Angel Reese is no stranger to celebrating big wins, whether on court or beyond basketball, but this time, the victory isn’t about her but for supermodel Anok Yai.
On Monday, London’s Royal Albert Hall was dazzling with celebrities and influential people as they celebrated the 2025 Fashion Awards.
The 27-year-old South Sudanese-American took home the Model of the Year honor in the award show presented by the British Fashion Council and Pandora.
During her acceptance speech, Yai, who took the stage in a stunning ivory satin corset-style gown, delivered remarkable words on growing up as a black woman.
“To all my little Black girls who are watching me right now – your color is not a curse. You are not a trend, you are not unfortunate. You are worthy, you are capable and you are more powerful than you can imagine,” she said.
Anok Yai receives The Model Of The Year Award at The Fashion Awards 2025John Phillips/Getty Images for BFC
With Yai’s powerful message, the Chicago Sky star was moved to tears as the supermodel won the prestigious title.
Although Reese wasn’t physically present at the ceremony, the WNBA star celebrated the model’s milestone.
In a post shared to her Instagram Story, Reese proudly called herself a “big fan” and admitted she was “in tears” as the Vogue covergirl accepted the honor.
“BIG FAN!” literally in tears! Thank you for being such an inspiration for black women,” she captioned her post.
Yai and the Sky forward shared a memorable moment during the recent Victoria’s Secret fashion show in New York.
While this year marked the runway model’s second time walking for the iconic brand show, Reese, on the other hand, made her debut as one of the models.
Anok Yai, Paloma Elsesser and Angel Reese pose backstage for Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show 2025.Slaven Vlasic/Getty Images for Victoria’s Secret
According to her, it was something that she “manifested.”
“I manifested this moment,” the 23-year-old told E! News in an exclusive interview, adding, “I posted it on my Story last year that I was going to be a Victoria’s Secret model and it literally happened less than a year later.”
Reese was also ecstatic to be with notable models like Gigi Hadid, Adriana Lima and Lily Aldridge, whom she looked up to.
“It means everything to me,” she added. “I’m just really excited to be here. There are so many great people and women who have done this. I get to sit in the room with the top top top models. Just being here and being in this moment—I’m grateful and graceful and I’m really gonna enjoy it.”
Although fans now see her more off the court, Reese remains focused on her basketball career and has made it clear she will not pursue modeling full-time.
Related: Angel Reese Posts Emotional Message After Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show
This story was originally published by Parade on Dec 3, 2025, where it first appeared in the News section. Add Parade as a Preferred Source by clicking here.