Kate Upton Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition: 10 Things to Know about the Cover Girl [PHOTOS]

Kate Upton is officially the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition cover girl of 2012. The blonde bombshell has been chosen to cover the iconic bikini edition of the athletic mag this year and the photo, which was supposed to be unveiled Monday night on "The Late Show with David Letterman," has leaked. 

The photo shows Kate Upton in a skimpy red and brown string bikini with her blonde hair blowing in the wind and a small charm necklace around her neck. She poses with one hand on her head and the other on her hip, smiling coyly at the camera. 

The Florida-native's ample curves are on full-display on the cover. As the leaked shot went viral, adoring male fans tweeted their glee. "I saw the cover of the 2012 SI Swimsuit magazine and I have to tell you, the real winner today is Kate Upton's boyfriend," tweeted the handle Shooter McGavin.  

"It's always what I talked about, I grew up in an American family so it always was on the coffee table," Kate says of the magazine. "So to be that girl on the magazine on the coffee table is really groundbreaking for me." 

This year, the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition was photographed in the Florida Gulf. Models went to Apalachicola, Fla. to photograph the drool-worthy issue in a spot hard-hit since the BP oil spill. The photo shoot will surely put Florida back in the limelight and show the world that it is still a thriving, and beautiful, tourist locale. 

"It took us a couple days to master saying it," Diane Smith, Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition editor, told USA Today. "We thought we can do some good for our country, really help a region that needs to be showcased," said Smith. 

It is no surprise the blonde beauty got the cover. She has been on fire lately, making headlines for her fashion career, her love life and her "Dougie" viral video. Here are 10 things to know about the supermodel and Sports Illustrated cover girl. 

RELATED ARTICLE: CAN CURVY MODELS KATE UPTON, CRYSTAL RENN CHANGE THE FACE OF FASHION? 

Kate Upton was named Sports Illustrated "Rookie of the Year" in 2011. This year, she made the cover. Upton knew that she would be featured in the magazine and had confidence in being chosen for the top spot. "I'm really hoping to get the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit cover. If I don't get it I'll be like 'What?!'" she said. The SI Swimsuit Edition features 18 models and 6 athletes this year. It will be read by an estimated 70 million adults, reported USA Today.

Kate Upton was born in Michigan and raised in Florida. She was first discovered after an equestrian competition in Florida and went to an open-call in Miami a few years later. “When Kate first came in, everyone at the agency thought I was crazy,” Ivan Bart, the “superagent” head of IMG Models, told The New York Times of Upton. “She wasn’t ‘fashion’ enough.”

Kate Upton is just 19-years-old. She stands at 5-feet, 11-inches with 36-25-34 measurements.

In early 2011, Upton posted a video to YouTube of her teaching the world how to "Dougie" during a Los Angeles Clippers game. The video quickly went viral and has since garnered over 3 million views.

Kate Upton does not fit into any specific modeling category. “I come from a business where the perennial question is ‘Are you beautiful in a fashion sense or in a beauty pageant sense or beautiful-girl-next-door sense?’ ” Stephen Gan, V magazine's editor in chief, told the NY Times. “And I feel like, why can’t we try to find something that’s a little bit different? If you’ve ever looked at pictures of Jean Harlow up close, she had the same curves as Kate Upton, the same silhouette, and she was the definition of beauty at the time.”

Esquire magazine named Kate Upton the "Woman of the Summer" for 2011. She was in the running for "Sexiest Woman Alive" that year, but the honor went to Rihanna.

Kate Upton has been linked to the likes of Kanye West (who she was reportedly seen kissing on a balcony) and Mark Sanchez (whose apartment she was reportedly seen exiting).

Kate Upton's has two sisters and a brother. Her sister Christie works for The New York Jets. One day, Kate has said, "After modeling, I would love to just start a farm with my sister and raise a family."

Kate Upton is an animal lover. She made an appearance on "The TODAY Show" on Tuesday morning, Feb. 14, after the release of her SI cover. She even took time to chat with Martha Stewart who was at the Westminster Dog Show at Madison Square Garden. Stewart tweeted a photo of the two together, "Kate upton and me are both dog lovers-she is on the cover of the new sports illustrated swimsuit iss" she wrote.

Kate Upton has been featured in the campaigns of numerous fashion brands including: Dooney & Bourke, Guess?, Beach Bunny Swimwear and Victoria's Secret.