Sophie Cunningham, Napheesa Collier, and Melissa Jefferson-Wooden in bikinis

SI picked the right trio.

The 2026 Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue will feature nine models that include Napheesa Collier, Sophie Cunningham, and USA Track and Field sprinter Melissa Jefferson-Wooden.

Set for release next month, the annual SI Swimsuit issue features the three athletes in various swimsuits. They were all photographed at South Seas Resort in Fort Myers, Florida. For now, they are the only three professional athletes announced.

Last year was much different as the issue featured 10 athletes, including Suni Lee, Eileen Gu, and Hailey Van Lith.

“Elite x3,” Sports Illustrated wrote in a caption on an Instagram video. “SI Swimsuit 2026 Athlete Shoot. They don’t just compete, they dominate. Games, races, bikinis – you name it.”

Sophie Cunningham, Napheesa Collier, and Melissa Jefferson-Wooden Shine Brightly On The Beach

Sophie Cunningham posing in jerseySophie Cunningham (Photo via Instagram)

For Sophie Cunningham, Napheesa Collier, and Melissa Jefferson-Wooden, their first SI Swimsuit issue was a blast.

Collier is coming off an MVP-caliber season and helped lead the Minnesota Lynx on a deep playoff run. Unfortunately, her team got eliminated in the semifinals. The five-time WNBA All-Star is one of the best players in the league. She is also the co-founder of Unrivaled and the vice president of the WNBPA.

She is one of the reasons why the WNBA players’ union and the league recently negotiated a new collective bargaining agreement.

Jefferson-Wooden is a five-time World Champion in track and field. She has one gold in the women’s 4×100-meter relay and one bronze in the individual 100-meter dash in the 2024 Paris Games. Melissa completed a dominant, undefeated 2025 season in the 100-meter dash, finishing 12-0.

Her dominant season was capped by winning the “triple crown” at the 2025 World Athletics Championships in Tokyo.

For the most notable person, Sophie Cunningham, her white string bikini pictures had already broken the internet earlier this week. The publication also featured her in a black bikini that melted fans’ hearts.

Cunningham, a current free agent, recently announced she will join USA Network as a WNBA contributor this season.

“I truly do think, like, go kick a– out on the court, and then go kick a– out in the real world being a woman who is strong, who is powerful, and who has a mindset that she can do anything,” Cunningham said to Sports Illustrated.

Sophie Cunningham is expected to find a team to play for in the coming weeks.

Fearne Cotton has broken her silence on split from husband Jesse Wood in her first TV interview since the breakup.

Joining Lorraine Kelly on Monday’s episode of the ITV show, the TV presenter, 43, also gave an health update after having two tumours removed from jaw.

Fearne announced her split from Jesse, the son of Rolling Stones bass guitarist Ronnie Wood, in December after 10 years of marriage.

She has since made swipes at Jesse and moved on with TV director Elliot Hegarty, with the pair having been seen kissing during a recent night out.

Fearne has had a difficult few months after undergoing surgery to remove two benign tumours from her jawline, just days before her split with Jesse emerged.

She told host Lorraine: ‘It’s all very amicable and kids are doing great. I am in a very good place.’place.’

 

Fearne Cotton has broken her silence on split from husband Jesse Wood in her first TV interview since the breakup

 

Fearne announced her split from Jesse, the son of Rolling Stones bass guitarist Ronnie Wood , in December after 10 years of marriage (both pictured in February 2024)

Discussing her recent surgery, she added: ‘I feel very grateful to have completely recovered.

‘I feel really good. I have a lot of people reaching out who have had the same thing.’

Davina McCall, 56, announced in November she’d been diagnosed with a colloid cyst, a rare type of benign brain tumour, and has supported Fearne.

She continued: ‘Everyone needs a Davina. She’s been amazing, weird that we had the same health thing going on at the same time. She’s so calming and we speak every day. She is just the best

It comes after Fearne has seemingly made another thinly-veiled dig at her ex-husband as she gushed that she is the happiest she’s ever been in a positive update.

Speaking to Scott Mills on his BBC Radio 2 breakfast show, Fearne gushed that she is ‘really happy’ and is ‘springing out of bed in the morning ready for life’.

Scott, who has known Fearne for 25 years, said he has never seen her ‘more positive or happier’, prompting Fearne to agree and reply: ‘Yeah I feel great!’

She told how her health scare has changed her outlook and said she has been seeking comfort from Davina.

Joining Lorraine Kelly on Monday's episode of the ITV show, the TV presenter, 43, also gave an health update after having two tumours removed from jaw
+8
View gallery

Joining Lorraine Kelly on Monday’s episode of the ITV show, the TV presenter, 43, also gave an health update after having two tumours removed from jaw