Petra Nemcova

Petra was brought up by her teacher mother, and bricklayer father in Karvina, in (as it was then) Czechoslovakia.

Petra made a big splash when she appeared in the 2002 Sports Illustrated swimsuit calender. She was quickly signed up by the Next modelling agency.

However tragedy struck in December 2004. Petra and her boyfriend Simon Atlee were holidaying in a Thai resort when the Tsunami struck. Petra survived by hanging onto a tree for over eight hours, despite suffering a broken pelvis and massive blood loss. Sadly Simon Atlee drowned.

Since the tragedy, Petra has devoted a lot time and energy to the Happy Hearts Fund, a charity which helps orphans of the Tsunami. She's also succeeded in rebuilding her modelling career. Her autobiography Love Always, telling the story of her turbulent life, was published in 2005.