(THROWBACK): Latino Stars On The Cover Of Sports Illustrated Swimsuit: 50 Years of Beautiful

On Monday NBC and Time Inc. present “Sports Illustrated Swimsuit: 50 Years of Beautiful,” a two-hour TV special celebrating the 50th anniversary of Sports Illustrated’s swimsuit franchise. Not many Latinas have graced the covers of SI Swimsuit so we must congratulate these 3 beauties for representing for #teamlatina

Brazilian model Maria João graced the cover in 1978. The classic cover was shot in Brazil.

Argentinian model Yamila Diaz-Rahi graced the cover in 2002 which was a Latin theme issue. It was shot in Mexico, Guatemala, Costa Rica, Brazil, Argentina and Spanish Harlem.

Mexican model Elsa Benítez graced the cover in 2001 and the cover was shot in Tunisia, Greece, Italy, Bahamas and Las Vegas.

Both Yamila Diaz-Rahi & Elsa Benítez graced the cover for a 2nd time in 2006 which was a All-star Past Cover Models issue. They shared the cover with Veronica Varekova, Elle Macpherson, Rebecca Romijn, Rachel Hunter, Daniela Pestova and Carolyn Murphy.