Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue's 1st transgender cover model: black filipino Leyna Bloom
Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue's 1st transgender cover model: black filipino Leyna Bloom
Beauty comes in many forms: "If there's one thing that our cover models have in common, it's that they don't have one thing in common"
The 27-year-old model and actress makes history as Sports Illustrated Swimsuit
Issue's first transgender cover model.
Breaking barriers in the fashion industry, she became one of the first openly transgender models during New York Fashion Week in September 2017 and was the first transgender woman of color to appear in Vogue India in October 2017.
"If there's one thing that our cover models have in common, it's that they don't have one thing in common”, said editor in chief MJ Day.
The other two are Megan Thee Stallion, the 26-year-old known for her unapologetic attitude about being herself, and Athletic powerhouse Naomi Osaka, who at 23, holds 4 Grand Slam titles and is competing in the Tokyo Olympics.
"This moment heals a lot of pain in the world. We deserve this moment; we have waited millions of years to show up as survivors and be seen as full humans filled with wonder."
Bloom follows in the footsteps of Brazilian model Valentina Sampaio, who became the first openly transgender Sports Illustrated Swimsuit model in July 2020, and Victoria's Secret's first openly transgender model in August 2019.
Somali-American Halima Aden made history as the first model to wear a Hijab and Burkini in a Sports Illustrated Swimsuit in 2019.
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