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Muay Thai Fighter Mia Kang Brings the Heat in These SI Swimsuit Photos
Mia Kang was photographed by Ruven Afanador in Mexico.
Ruven Afanador/Sports Illustrated
Muay Thai fighter Mia Kang made her SI Swimsuit debut in 2016 as the brand’s model search winner. She returned to the magazine the following year as a rookie and stunned during her 2017 photo shoot with photographer Ruven Afanador in Mexico. The body positivity advocate is constantly using her platform to encourage self-love and speaks vulnerably about her experience with eating disorders and mental health.
When she entered the modeling scene at 13, she attempted to achieve unrealistic beauty standards by quickly and drastically altering her weight with unhealthy methods. Kang wanted a reset to connect with herself, so she went to Thailand for a 10-day vacation and ended up moving into a Thai fight camp for nine months.
“I connected to the philosophical part of martial arts more so than the physical. It’s a great workout. But there was something else in it for me,” the 34-year-old told InStyle. “The most badass thing I’ve ever done wasn't beating someone up [in a professional fight]. It was telling everybody who told me what I was supposed to look like that I'm not going to look like that anymore.”
Below are seven of our favorite photos from Kang’s 2017 photo shoot in Mexico.
Ruven Afanador/Sports Illustrated
Ruven Afanador/Sports Illustrated
Ruven Afanador/Sports Illustrated
Ruven Afanador/Sports Illustrated
Ruven Afanador/Sports Illustrated
Ruven Afanador/Sports Illustrated
Ruven Afanador/Sports Illustrated
Ananya Panchal is a writer on the Lifestyle and Trending News team for SI Swimsuit, where she covers fashion, beauty, pop culture and the internet’s favorite personalities and trends. She joined the brand in 2022 after roles at Bustle, the San Francisco Chronicle and the TODAY Show. Panchal loves to write about fashion in all its forms—from standout runway moments and evolving street style to the best accessories to elevate each season’s wardrobe (she rarely goes anywhere without a stack of jewelry and a coffee in hand). A self-proclaimed beauty fanatic, she’s always on the hunt for must-have products and loves breaking down viral trends. Her favorite series at the moment is spotlighting female founders and the stories behind the brands they’ve built—especially those shaping the future of fashion, wellness and tech. She is based between New York City and San Francisco and, when she’s not writing, can be found rewatching One Tree Hill, playing sudoku, trying new restaurants or ranking her favorite Disney Channel Original Movies. She holds a bachelor’s degree in communications and journalism with a minor in criminal justice from Boston University.