The 2009 Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition has landed, and it’s Bar Rafaeli on the coveted cover photo! Bar who? Bar Rafaeli, that’s who – a 23 year old Israeli model known for her various modeling work in magazines and other print media but better known in show business circles for her relationship with American actor Leonardo DiCaprio. She has landed the most coveted cover of them all, the 2009 swimsuit issue of Sports Illustrated. She now joins an elite group of models who have been privileged to be the magazine’s
cover model and who have gone on to big modeling careers. Check out this list of former Sports Illustrated swimsuit edition cover models: Cheryl Tiegs, Elle Macpherson, Rachel Hunter, Christie Brinkley, Paulina Porizkova, Valeria Mazza, Heidi Klum, Tyra Banks, and Marisa Miller.

The special issue was invented by Sports Illustrated editor Andre Laguerre to fill the mid-1960s sporting calendar. The story is that he asked a fashion reporter, Jule Campbell, to go on a shoot to fill space, including the cover, with a beautiful model. The first issue in 1964 entailed a cover and a five-page layout. However, Campbell changed the face of modeling, became a powerful figure and molded the issue into a media phenomenon.

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