Model Kate Upton Graces the Cover of Sports Illustrated's 2012 Swimsuit Issue

Sports Illustrated magazine unveiled its annual swimsuit issue with model Kate Upton on the cover in a two-toned, red string bikini with a skimpy bottom piece. Upton, aged 19, a native of Melbourne, Florida, is the latest in a long line of models including Heidi Klum, Elle MacPherson, Tyra Banks and Brooklyn Decker, who have appeared in the coveted role as the swimsuit issue's cover girl. "An SI girl is about being yourself because the magazine is about the actual girl and her personality," Upton said. "And her being confident in a swimsuit."

M.J. Day, senior editor for Sports Illustrated, said Upton "embodies the sophistication and sexiness" called for in the issue that is seen by some 70 million readers of its print edition, viewers of its Web edition and those who browse it on mobile devices like phones and tablet computers.

"I grew up in an American family, so it always was on the coffee table and to be that girl on the magazine on the coffee table would just be really ground breaking for me," Upton said in an interview before discovering that she was 2012's cover girl. This year's 17 models in the swimsuit edition were photographed in Australia, Zambia, the Seychelles, Panama and in the United States in Apalachicola, Florida.

"Behind a photo is a whole entire team, so for a really amazing photo, it's that moment because everyone is having a moment," Upton explained. "You know, the hair stylist is having the moment, makeup artist is having a moment. You know, the stylist. I'm having a moment. Walter is. So it's you know, for that many people to come together and have that amazing photo is really awesome."

The Sports Illustrated swimsuit edition, which hits newsstands on Tuesday (February 14) is annually the most widely-read edition of the magazine and being on the cover or inside its pages can launch a career for a model.