ESPN’s 2018 Body Issue Features Queer Athlete Couple For First Time Ever

The 2018 edition of ESPN‘s famed Body Issue has been released, featuring a same-sex couple as the cover stars for the very first time in the edition’s 10 years.

Seattle-based professional athletes, Megan Rapinoe and Sue Bird, stepped in front of the lens as a couple for the inaugural edition where elite sportspeople pose in the nude or semi-nude to rival Sports Illustrated legendary swimsuit edition but with ~class~ and ~tasteful nudes~.

#Body10 #BodyIssue ⚽️???? pic.twitter.com/svYJxOtYhD

— Sue Bird (@S10Bird) June 25, 2018

Rapinoe, who is a point guard for Seattle Storm and 10-time WNBA All-Star, and Bird, who is a forward for Seattle Reign FC and is a 2015 Fifa World Cup champion, began dating mid-2017, and said that being on the cover for this year’s Body issue is a pretty badass thing to be able to boost queer visibility.

The couple spoke with ESPN about their experience and Rapinoe recognises the importance of using her platform for positive representation.

I think neither of us really wants to just do things and be like, “We’re the gay couple.” But to have this really unique vehicle to actually do that, to celebrate who we are in our sport, but also the fact that we’ll be the first gay couple, is pretty special.

It’s pretty amazing to think about, especially in the times we’re in. Just think of how far we’ve come, but also the current climate and defiance in the face of that. Not only are we female athletes, but we’re dating as well. It’s kind of badass.

Bird, however, is much more excited about being about to look back in the future and recognise that she’s a part of history.

Yeah, I think it’ll probably be even more badass later. A year, five years, 10 years, 20 years, to look back and be like, “Oh, they were the first openly gay couple to be on the cover, to be in the issue.”

.@S10Bird and I got nudie???????? @Espn #BodyIssue pic.twitter.com/ttqs5MGYiz

— Megan Rapinoe (@mPinoe) June 25, 2018

Other athletes in the 2018 edition include our own shark Greg Norman (which explains all those tweets of him in the nud last week), Olympic ice skater Adam Rippon, Swedish footballer and man with tattooed ass Zlatan Ibrahimovic, seven-time WWE champion Charlotte Flair, and retired three-time NFL Superbowl player Jerry Rice.

Previously, the cover of the Body Issue has featured athletes in the nuddy like Serena Williams, Venus Williams, Conor McGregor, Marshawn Lynch, Rob Gronkowski in Hulk hands, and Ronda Rowsey.