Breanna Stewart lands on Sports Illustrated cover as she looks to win fourth Final Four tourney

For the second time in less than six weeks, a female athlete graces the cover of Sports Illustrated, signs of positive growth. Following in the path of Ronda Rousey, who graced the cover of the SI Swimsuit Edition in mid-February, Connecticut basketball icon Breanna Stewart lands on the cover (dated March 22, 2016). As a side note, it represents her second appearance on a cover, as she was on a regional cover of Sports Illustrated on March 14, 2014.

Featuring several collectible covers as part of SI’s March Madness preview, Stewart is the only female player to gain the cover treatment. The other athletes include senior forward Brice Johnson from the Tar Heels, Buddy Hield on the Oklahoma cover and Iowa’s Jarrod Uthoff. Stewart is part of Sports Illustrated’s preview coverage of the NCAA women’s basketball tournament, which sees the Huskies seeded number 1 in the tournament (for the tenth consecutive year) along with a top ranking in the AP Polls. It was a fitting honor for Stewart to be recognized with such a sporting milestone as she looks to end her NCAA career on a historic note.

Destined to be the first pick overall in the 2016 WNBA Draft, she is not the only Huskies superstar that is poised to become a first-round pick. Along with Moriah Jefferson and Morgan Tuck, each has a date with destiny as they aim to become the first-ever players to capture an unprecedented four NCAA Final Four championships in a career. In their combined careers wtih Connecticut, they have amassed an astonishing 145-5 record, which includes an undefeated mark of 18-0 in the NCAA tournament.

Hailing from North Syracuse, New York, Stewart’s 2014 appearance on the cover marked the eighth time that Huskies nationally renowned women’s basketball program gained such prestige. With astounding career marks including 2,554 points (top ten all-time in Huskies lore) and 1,113 rebounds, she has also dished out 404 assists while terrorizing opposing offenses with 395 blocked shots. Complementing her three Final Four titles is the fact that she was named the Most Outstanding Player all three times.
The only male player to reach such heights was Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, accomplishing the feat for UCLA.

Favored to repeat once again as the winner of the Associated Press Player of the Year, the Naismith Trophy, the Wade Trophy Winner, John R. Wooden Award and USBWA Player of the Year honor, Stewart’s legacy in the game is secure. While a fourth championship would definitely earn another deserved cover spot, one could also argue that she would establish herself as an early favorite for the Sportsperson of the Year Award.

Members of US Women’s World Cup championship team featured on 25 collectible SI covers

Sports Illustrated continues its landmark support of US Women’s soccer with another sensational series of covers. In the aftermath of an emotional victory over Japan in the 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup, the popular periodical has released an unprecedented 25 variant covers. Of note, one cover features several teammates together, while there are 24 covers for each of the players on the team, plus head coach Jill Ellis.

Image obtained from: http://www.si.com/planet-futbol/2015/07/13/uswnt-sports-illustrated-cover-2015-world-cup

In addition to snapping their 16-year long championship drought, they also became the first country to capture three FIFA Women’s World Cup championships. After suffering an emotional loss to Japan in the final back in 2011, Carli Lloyd proved to be the difference maker as her hat trick contributed to a 5-2 victory in Vancouver.

Although Sports Illustrated has issued variant covers, there has never been anything of this magnitude. Prior to the FIFA Women’s World Cup, Sports Illustrated had four unique covers featuring US soccer stars. In addition, there was a fifth cover exclusive for subscribers.

To honor that achievement, Sports Illustrated has come up with a one-of-a-kind cover shoot. Instead of one cover to honor the 23 players and coach Jill Ellis, one for each of them. From Golden Ball winner Carli Lloyd to veteran stalwarts Abby Wambach and Megan Rapinoe to backup goalkeepers Alyssa Naeher and Ashlyn Harris, each member of the World Cup-winning squad, posing with the World Cup trophy, has her own cover as part of a unique set.

In addition, Sports Illustrated featured a special edition championship cover (with a gold border) that was only available online. With the US team featuring so many recognizable names, the cover innovation was an ideal way to not only recognize every member of the team, but showcase the growing influence of women in sport.

Originally, the plan was to photograph all the players in Los Angeles on July 7. Simon Bruty, the photographer who had worked on the World Cup final was scheduled to do it. As he was heading home to Washington, the plan could not be executed on that day. With the entire team in New York City for a victory parade later in the week, it was a serendipitous moment. As every member of the roster agreed to participate in a photo shoot before and after the parade, the result was a historic series of covers that fans will likely cherish for years to come.

USA soccer heroes appear on four collectible Sports Illustrated covers

Building on the momentum of having Ronda Rousey grace its cover, Sports Illustrated (SI) has made a profound statement on the growing impact of women’s sport. Taking into account that late spring is playoff season in the NBA and NHL, it would have not been surprising to have a cover devoted to one of their sports. Instead, SI rightfully devoted their cover to a preview of the 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup.

Abby Wambach on 1 of 4 variant covers for Sports Illustrated’s 2015 World Cup coverage

In fact, it is actually four different collectible covers that can be found on newsstands. Of note, four members of the United States national women’s soccer team are featured on said covers; led by forwards Sydney Leroux, Alex Morgan, Abby Wambach and midfielder Carli Lloyd. As a side note, subscribers receive a team cover, which features Leroux, Lloyd, Morgan and Wambach, who have collectively scored 331 goals in international play..

For Morgan, there may be a slight tinge of irony. Like the aforementioned Rousey, both have appeared in SI’s world-famous Swimsuit Issue. The chance for both to make an appearance on the cover is an opportunity to look beyond their sex appeal and celebrate their accomplishments, while simultaneously serving as role models for young girls.

Considering that the 35 year-old Wambach is in the twilight of her career, the chance to be featured on SI’s cover represents another milestone in her outstanding career. With 182 career goals, the most of any woman in the history of the sport, the one championship she has yet to win is the World Cup. Should the US emerge victorious in the gold medal game in Vancouver, expect another cover appearance for Wambach.

One element that has not been overlooked by Canada’s soccer fans is the fact that Leroux was born north of the border. The cover displays great bravura as the caption indicates that Leroux will silence Canada’s boos. With the USA’s first two games in Group play taking part in Winnipeg (its province borders the state of Minnesota), the number of American fans in attendance ensures there are no boos. As a side note, the USA’s third game takes place in Edmonton (where Canada played its first two Group games), the northern-most host city in the event, there may be some boos to come.

The key storyline of the issue is one of redemption. In addition to the goal of winning its first World Cup title since 1999, which was a landmark moment for women’s sport in America, motivation is high after the bitterness of a shootout loss to Japan in the 2011 title game. Compounded by the gender discrimination controversy over the use of artificial turf, America’s entry in this year’s World Cup has not been lacking in storylines.

Regardless of the outcome, the impact of all four covers signifies a remarkable victory. Punctuating the relevance of women’s soccer as a point of pride for American sports fans, perhaps it may lead to increased coverage of Women’s Professional Soccer, along with other female sports.

UFC icon Ronda Rousey lands on the cover of Sports Illustrated

As the UFC women’s bantamweight champion, Ronda Rousey has not only risen to global superstar, but has emerged as the face of mixed martial arts. Landing on the cover of Sports Illustrated, the popular weekly dubbed her “the world’s most dominant athlete”

Receiving an outpouring of support on social media, it marked another remarkable milestone in her career. Of note, she became the first-ever female fighter from UFC to be featured on the cover. Roger Huerta was on the cover in 2007, but he was not the cover model as he was just in an action shot.

Rousey becomes the first female athlete in any sport this year to grace the cover of Sports Illustrated. Earlier this year, Rousey was featured in the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue, working with photographer Walter Iooss, Jr.

Her appearance on said cover is akin to when wrestling superstar Hulk Hogan graced the cover in 1984. Hogan’s appearance signified the popular impact of professional wrestling, signifying a golden era to come. As such, Rousey creates the same impact, showing that UFC is here to stay, definitely a landmark moment in the history of Mixed Martial Arts.

Among the diverse number of topics discussed in the piece, including time spent with her dog, along with her status as a single person, Rousey speaks about how she felt guilty at first about defeating her friend, Cat Zingano in 14 seconds. A collage of frame-by-frame shots from the 14 second match adorn the top of one of the pages, re-telling the fastest match in UFC women’s bantamweight history.

Of note, Rousey received compensation of only $130,000 for the fight. In the article, she also mentioned how she tries to keep her fights short, reducing the wear and tear on her body, while hoping to benefit by extending her MMA career. Also showing some brashness, Rousey claims to have challenged adults to fights during her teenage years.

A future UFC Hall of Famer, Rousey’s next fight shall take place on August 1. Defending her title against the undefeated Bethe Correia, she is ranked seventh among bantamweights.