Ana Beatriz Barros

By Sara Templeton

Not enough that the Brazilian's won the World Cup for a record fifth time - hey, we all got caught up in World Cup fever! - it is also a fact that the country produces a fair portion of the World's most beautiful people.

It is just me or does Brazil seem to have a special 'model factory', where many of the world's most looked-at men and women seem to emanate from?

It may just be me, but here we have yet another Brazilian beauty who is shaking up the fashion world, not only with her hazel eyes and perfect body, but also her charming personality.

Born in Itabira, Brazil, on the 29th of May, 1982, Ana Barros later moving with her parents and sisters to the bustling city of Rio de Janeiro, and was raised there for much of her youth.

Her big break came about when she was holidaying in her home country, at the beach in Rio, and was spotted by one of the Elite Model Management's senior partners.

As is often the case, he motivated her to enter one of his company's model comps, the Elite Look of the Year contest. Lord knows, they must be rigged, as everyone who is "encouraged" to enter seems to place in the top 10.

But at any rate, Ana Barros did deserve to do well on her own merits. In the year of 1996, at the tender age of 14, Ana won the Brazilian Elite Look of the Year contest, which equates to an instant signing with the Elite Model Agency.

After working on her portfolio, Guess? headman extraordinaire Paul Marciano took one look at her shots and signed the 5'11" tall model up for a new Guess? campaign in Hawaii. Cue ukulele music.

Since then she's appeared in heaps of glossy mags, such as the Brazilian issues of Capricho, Claudia, Audi and Elle. You know you've hit the big time, at least in the States, when you asked to to a shoot for the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue - and that's exactly what Ana did. Her first year in the famed mag was 2002.

She's also been featured in USA's Allure, Spain's Woman and France's Nova and 20 Ans magazines, plus she's headlined advertisements for Head & Shoulders, Chanel and Onyx.

Not just a print model, Ana likes the catty side of modeling (pun intended). On the catwalk, she has performed for the likes of Christian Dior and Christian Lacroix, Valentino, Paco Rabbane and even Jean Paul Gaultier.

She has been quoted as saying, since learning to speak English, she's a bit of a motormouth and her easy-going nature shines through with much of her work.

She loves seeing and experiencing new cultures and exploring the world, which is a good thing if you're a highly paid model - her frequent flyer points must be worth a bit.

In her spare time, Ana Barros says that she likes to do everyday, normal things, such as just chilling out with her friends, going to the movies, reading books and listening to music. You see, models can lead a normal and balanced life.

At present, Ana divides her time between living in the cosmopolitan Paris and the concrete jungle of New York. She works for Elite Model Management in Paris (and her native Brazil), and for IMG in New York. It seems as though everyone wants a piece of Ms Barros, but then it's not hard to see why, either!