Enoch Cree Nation’s Ashley Callingbull a Sports Illustrated swimsuit finalist

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Former Mrs. Universe and Blackstone actor Ashley Callingbull of Enoch Cree Nation is a Sports Illustrated’s 2022 Swim Search finalist. She’s the first Indigenous woman to pose for the magazine’s Swimsuit issue.

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Callingbull is also a reality TV contestant on Amazing Race Canada.

The upcoming issue will feature some of the 14 finalists who will vie for a spot. They are flying to the Dominican Republic for a photoshoot with photographer Yu Tsai, according to the Daily Mail.

“I feel blessed to be able to break barriers and be in spaces where others have told me I don’t belong,” Callingbull wrote on Instagram.

Callingwood is also an activist, motivational speaker, model and a jingle dress dancer.

“For a lot of my life, a lot of the things that I’ve had to chase, they weren’t open to me because I’m an Indigenous woman, whether that be acting or modeling,” Callingbull told E! News last year.

“And I’ve been told that, you know, Indigenous people aren’t relatable, so we’re not going to cast you, which is such a crazy thing to hear. Now, times are changing and things are becoming more inclusive, it’s been too long to get to this point.”

The other finalists are breast-cancer survivor Kelly Crump, 42; Bachelor and Bachelor in Paradise alumnus Hannah Godwin, 27; NASA physicist and former Miss World Oregon Manju Bangalore, 24; astrophysicist Sarafina Nance, 28; model Ashley Byrd, 32; chronic illness and mental health advocate Gigi Robinson, 23; brain tumor survivor Victoria Vesce, 28; ICU nurse Hillory Fields, 28; model Nicole Petrie, 27; YouTube star and model Drew Dorsey; lawyer Michelle Fuente Steffen; high-altitude climber Lotta Hintsa, 33, and social media entrepreneur Mady Dewey, 25.

The winner will be featured prominently in the 2023 issue.