Examining 50 years of ‘beautiful’ in Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue

Abstract

The year 2014 marked the 50th Anniversary of Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue (SISI). I argue that SISI is problematic for the continued struggle of women in sport given the nature and the extent of sexual objectification. The SISI has evolved over the years from a bathing suit fashion spread to a contemporary multimedia colossal. For example, to help celebrate the 50th anniversary, SISI teamed up with Mattel and featured Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Barbie in the February 2014 issue, and a special collector’s item Barbie doll was produced and sold exclusively at Target. Sport is a celebration of human variety, yet Sports Illustrated rarely includes female athletes on their covers, and instead pushes a product that celebrates heterosexuality and sexual objectification of females.

Keywords:

• Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue
• women athletes
• sexual objectification

Acknowledgments

Many thanks to John Russell and the two anonymous reviewers for their insightful feedback. I also acknowledge Pam Sailors for her valuable suggestions. I am very grateful for Paul Gaffney’s insight and encouragement as we navigated the complex world of photographs and copyright.

Notes

1. NBC (2012). Sports Illustrated Swimsuit: 50 Years of Beautiful. http://www.nbc.com/sports-illustrated-swimsuit-50-years-of-beautiful.

2. It is necessary to mention that in 2007, SI started to incorporate the practice of body paint. This practice now occurs yearly and a special chapter of the commemorative book celebrated body painting. Such technology can trick consumers to believe they are consuming ‘art’ rather than sexualized images. Coupled with the increased popularity of body painting in SISI, a type of spoof instructional manual titled, ‘A man’s guide to do-it-yourself body paint’ also appeared in the 2014 SISI. The use of women models and athletes for body painting and the idea of the body itself as a canvas would be relevant to explore in depth in the future.

3. Lucas, B. (10 April 2015). Five of the sexiest girls who surf you should look out for this summer. First Class Lifestyle http://the1stclasslifestyle.com/5-sexiest-girls-surf-look-summer/

4. Chunk IE blog. http://chunk.ie/article/5150/sport/kim-glass/

5. Molly Sims Blog. http://www.mollysims.com/blog/post/50-years-of-sports-illustrated-swimsuit-beauties/

6. For example, in 2000, boxer Evander Holyfield and model Heidi Klum were photographed in a playful boxing ‘match,’ complete with boxing gloves and boxing boots. Similarly, in 1998, golfer Phil Nickelson was photographed fully clothed and his wife wore a bikini and balanced suggestively on a golf putter. Albert Pujols, a baseball player, in full uniform suggestively supports his wife who sports heels and bikini in 2002. Finally, tennis player, Rafael Nadal was photographed in 2012 with model Bar Refael. Nadal uses his tennis racket to help cover Refael’s breasts.

7. Mark McGwire, http://cdn-jpg.si.com/sites/default/files/styles/si_photo_tile_image/public/swimsuit/2005/05_athletes_04.jpg?itok=F_

8. Tony Hawk, https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/236x/e9/cd/4b/e9cd4b85100f10360af9e13e97751633.jpg

9. Danica Patrick, http://indymotorspeedway.com/danica4.html

10. Lindsey Vonn, http://cdn-jpg.si.com/sites/default/files/2013/03/lindsey-vonn.jpg

11. For more information on thunder thighs see the blog Peanutbutterplank, http://peanutbutterplank.com/2014/01/15/just-call-me-thunder-thighs/ and, Sharyl Lyall (Feb 11 2014). ‘Chasing gold and jeans that fit.’ New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2014/02/12/sports/olympics/chasing-gold-and-jeans-that-fit.html?_r=0

12. I thank one of the reviewers for the accurate term to describe SISI.

13. A modest proposal. (12 February 2014). http://fitandfeminist.com/2014/02/12/a-modest-proposal/