–Issue Features Six Special Covers: Michael Phelps, Venus Williams, Marshawn Lynch, Prince Fielder, Jamie Anderson, Serge Ibaka —

The sixth annual edition of ESPN The Magazine’s The Body Issue will feature 22 athletes posing nude, including five-time Wimbledon champion Venus Williams, 18-time Olympic gold medalist Michael Phelps, Seattle Seahawks running back Marshawn Lynch, Texas Rangers first baseman Prince Fielder and Oklahoma City Thunder forward Serge Ibaka.

The issue, which hits newsstands July 11, is ESPN The Magazine’s annual celebration of the athletic form.

“We somehow manage to raise the bar each year,” said ESPN The Magazine and ESPN.com editor in chief Chad Millman. “This year’s collection of exceptional athletes and stunning photography showcases an array of sports and body types. It inhabits our mission to pay tribute to these athletes’ bodies and all they are capable of.”

The list of athletes in this year’s issue also includes Olympic gold-medal-winning snowboarder Jamie Anderson, tennis player Tomas Berdych, Olympic bronze-medal-winning bobsledder Aja Evans, Arizona Cardinals wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald and U.S. Men’s National Team soccer player Omar Gonzalez, who also plays on the Los Angeles Galaxy.

Also on the list are professional surfer Coco Ho, boxer Bernard Hopkins (the oldest title winner in the sport’s history), cliff diver Ginger Huber, Olympic hockey player Hilary Knight, WNBA All-Star Angel McCoughtry and the husband-wife team of X Games stars Travis Pastrana and Lyn-Z.

Other athletes who posed for the issue include: Amy Purdy, a snowboarder who won a bronze medal at the 2014 Paralympics; U.S. women’s soccer star Megan Rapinoe; Jimmy Spithill, the skipper of the America’s Cup-winning yacht Oracle Team USA; BMX rider Nigel Sylvester; and women’s boxer Danyelle Wolf.

Go here for photo galleries, video, interviews, and more as well as a compilation video featuring the athletes from the 2014 Body Issue.

The Body Issue Features:

Awakening the giant
As his memory fades and his body breaks down, Y.A. Tittle finds solace in family. By Seth Wickersham

Nothing to see here
The team shower is home to celebration, fellowship and naked dance-offs. It’s also welcome to Michael Sam. By David Fleming

Body confidential
The Mag surveyed male and female athletes across a wide variety of sports—football, hockey, baseball, soccer, Olympics—on a host of subjects, ranging from whether body odor has ever affected in-game performance to female athletes’ concerns about their fertility.

About The Body Issue

ESPN The Magazine’s The Body Issue set out five years ago with one mission: to celebrate the athletic form. The keystone of each annual issue is The Bodies We Want photo portfolio, which features roughly 20 of the world’s most elite athletes posing (tastefully) nude. In years past, The Mag has featured sports icons from Serena Williams and Colin Kaepernick to Candace Parker, Blake Griffin, Hope Solo, Kerri Walsh Jennings (who posed 8 months pregnant!), Apolo Anton Ohno and golf legend Gary Player. ESPN The Magazine has a circulation of 14 million readers, with 2.1 million subscribers.

Follow ESPN The Magazine on Twitter and Instagram (@ESPNmag) and like them on Facebook.

Download 2014 Body Issue Covers

Photo credits:
–        Venus Williams photographed by Williams+Hirakawa for ESPN The Magazine
–        Serge Ibaka photographed by Peter Hapak for ESPN The Magazine
–        Jamie Anderson photographed by Peggy Sirota for ESPN The Magazine
–        Marshawn Lynch photographed by Carlos Serrao for ESPN The Magazine
–        Michael Phelps photographed by Carlos Serrao for ESPN The Magazine
–        Prince Fielder photographed by Alexei Hay for ESPN The Magazine

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Contact: Carrie Kreiswirth 860-766-6042