The athlete was featured in the SI Swimsuit Issue in 2017 and ’18.

Gymnast Aly Raisman made her SI Swimsuit debut in 2017. The two-time Olympian returned to the magazine the following year for two separate features, including a photo shoot in Aruba with photographer James Macari and a black-and-white “In Her Own Words” special feature captured by Taylor Ballantyne in a Brooklyn studio.

Raisman started out in the sport at the age of 2 in 1996, reportedly inspired to become an athlete after watching the Olympic Games in Atlanta. She served as the captain of the U.S. women’s teams in 2012 and ’16 and is a six-time Olympic medalist with three golds, two silvers and one bronze. Raisman is the third-most decorated American gymnast ever, behind only Shannon Miller and two-time SI Swimsuit model Simone Biles.

“I’m so excited to be a part of the issue for the second year in a row... For the shoots, I was excited, but also a little nervous in the beginning, because it’s still a new experience,” Raisman said of her ’18 return to SI Swimsuit. “Once we started shooting, I felt comfortable because everyone on set was so supportive!”

The athlete officially retired from her sport in January 2020 at the age of 25. Today, Raisman is a published author—she released her book, Fierce: How Competing for Myself Changed Everything in 2017—an amateur baker and a model for Aerie. She has also collaborated with brand Sylvia P on several leotard collections for girls.

Below are eight of our favorite images of Raisman from her shoot in Aruba.