2016 American Olympic gymnasts Aly Raisman and Simone Biles will be featured in the 2017 Sports Illustrated swimsuit edition.
These girls are arguably the most recognized out of the five women who represented America in Rio de Janeiro at the 2016 Summer Olympics. Their positive messages about being confident in your abilities and working hard to achieve your goals resonated with many people, including my 10-year-old sister.
She watched them this summer in awe as they flew through the air performing super-human tricks. To this day, she follows both of them on Instagram and enjoys seeing their posts. She probably comments and professes her utmost love and appreciation for them.
It’s true, they are amazing women. I mean, my friends and I still fangirl over Raisman because she’s so iconic and inspiring, from her athletic ability to her body image.
Both Biles and Raisman have muscular bodies complete with well-toned arms and legs and six pack abs, which is not uncommon among gymnasts. The traditional view of gymnasts being skinny, waif-like beings is nearly gone. Now, it is all about being fit and strong. These Olympians embody both of these attributes and therein lies the rub.
Personally, I am not a fan of the Swimsuit Issue at all. I don’t understand how scantily clad models wearing a sheet has anything to do with being at the beach or the pool. It’s just not reasonable.
In recent years, the annual Swimsuit Issue has broken society’s expectations for the traditional skinny model types with plus-size model Ashley Graham and now is moving into the sports market with Raisman and Biles. My concern is that the Olympains were made spectacles of instead of celebrating and embracing their fit bodies. Of course, it is impressive. I would be lying if I said I didn’t admire it myself.
I have been a competitive gymnast for 15 years. It takes a lot of hard work to achieve anything in the sport, but it takes a special kind of dedication to achieve the level of fitness that Biles and Raisman have. It is hard to fit into the mold that people assume you should fit into, but these women have embraced who they are and have focused on being in great physical shape rather than skinny, and that is admirable.
At first, I didn’t like the idea of two such inspiring and fit women being objectified in the Swimsuit Issue. After seeing a few photos and hearing Biles, who I met at a competition last year, talk about how she felt during the experience, I decided that their power, beauty and overall positive images were exactly why they were perfect for the edition.
“I’ve learned that muscle is beauty. It’s not just about a pretty face and tiny figures. Muscles are beautiful,” Biles said to me in a text message exchange.
She expressed her gratitude for the photographers as well, saying that this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
With the facts of the matter in mind, my feminine conscience was eased, and I couldn’t agree more.
Having two of the most iconic faces from the 2016 Olympic Games photographed in a magazine that typically perpetuates feminine beauty standards proves that the way we see beauty in our society is changing.
My 10-year-old sister can continue to fangirl over her idols with my approval.
Myia Hambrick is a 21-year-old mass communication junior from Temple, Georgia.
Editor’s Note: The author of this column competes for LSU gymnastics, which The Daily Reveille sports reporters cover.