ADRIANA LIMA

Born June 12, 1981
Adriana Francesca Lima is a Brazilian model best known as a Victoria's Secret Angel since 2000 and a spokesmodel for Maybelline cosmetics. At age 15, Lima finished first place in Ford's "Supermodel of Brazil" competition and took second place the following year in the Ford "Supermodel of the World" competition before signing with Elite Model Management in New York City.

"Fashion is about good energy. It's about feelings. That's what I have to give the people -- good energy and good feelings."

Be sure what you want and be sure about yourself. Fashion is not just beauty, it's about good attitude. You have to believe in yourself and be strong.

I missed out on everything. Sometimes on the street I see teenagers hanging out and going to the movies, going to concerts, and I get so jealous.

I used to be very shy. When I first started, I had to go to a casting, and I had to go in a bikini. I thought I was too skinny. But I went in and got the job! And that's how I started.

I was in a fashion show and I had on a strapless top. When I got to the end the top was down.

If you look around Brazil you see pregnant women everywhere. Here you don't see that as much. There the only thing they do is babies, babies, babies! Especially the poor families.

If one day I have a daughter and my daughter wants to be a model, I would never let her!
- Adriana Lima

Let's face it; it wasn't Adriana Lima's IQ score that caught the attention of Victoria's Secret's talent scouts. That drop-dead gorgeous body of hers seems like a gift from the heavens. Sexy? Most definitely, yes.

Her April 2006 GQ cover was the highest-selling issue of the year. She ranked No. 7 on FHM's 100 Sexiest Women 2007 and was chosen as one of People magazine's annual 100 Most Beautiful People in the World in May 2007. In June 2007, she was named the Hottest Girl on the Planet at the first Spike TV Guys' Choice Awards.

She was voted AskMen's Most Desirable Woman in 2005, ranked No. 4 in 2006, No. 4 in 2007, and No. 19 in 2008.

Her climb from obscurity to glam girl occurred after placing second in the Ford Supermodel of the World Contest at the age of 13. Three years later, she headed to one of the fashion centers of the world, New York, and signed with Elite Model Management. Once there, her modeling portfolio began to expand exponentially after appearing in Vogue Italy, as well as in Vogue UK, I-D UK, and Marie Claire Brazil. Adriana also appeared in Vogue U.S., Germany and UK, and in Marie Claire Italy in 1999.

Lima never thought about being a model, although she had won many beauty pageants in elementary school. However, she had a friend at school who wanted to enter a modeling contest and didn't want to enter alone, so Lima entered with her. Both sent in pictures, and the contest sponsor soon asked Lima to come out for the competition. Soon after, at the age of 15, she entered and finished in first place in Ford's "Supermodel of Brazil" model search. She subsequently entered the 1996 Ford "Supermodel of the World" contest and finished in second place. Three years later, Lima moved to New York City and signed with Elite Model Management. After acquiring representation, Lima's modeling portfolio quickly began to expand, and she appeared in numerous international editions of Vogue and Marie Claire. As a runway model, she has walked the catwalks for designers such as Vera Wang, Christian Lacroix, Emanuel Ungaro, Giorgio Armani, Fendi, Ralph Lauren and Valentino, among others. Lima became a GUESS? girl in 2000, appearing in that year's fall ad campaign. She also appeared in the book A Second Decade of Guess? Images.

In February 2008, she was featured on the cover of Esquire, re-creating the classic 1966 Angie Dickinson cover on Esquire's 75th anniversary along with fellow Victoria's Secret Angels Alessandra Ambrosio, Karolina Kurkova, Izabel Goulart and Selita Ebanks. She appeared only in shoes, diamonds and gloves for the November 2007 issue of Vanity Fair celebrating 20 years of supermodels with her fellow Angels. Lima was chosen to be a part of People magazine's 100 most beautiful people in the world list, sharing that space with the Angels, with whom she also received a star on the Hollywood "Walk of Fame" prior to the 2007 Victoria's Secret Fashion Show. In February 2008, she was chosen to be the face of Mexico's Liverpool department store chain and launched the partnership with a press conference, runway show, and summer campaign.

Lima is probably best known for her work with Victoria's Secret. Her first fashion show for the company came in 1999, and since being contracted as an Angel in 2000, she has appeared on subsequent shows ever since, opening the show in 2003, 2007, and 2008, in which she also closed the opening segment. Lima has appeared on several television ads for the brand, including the praised and criticized "Angel in Venice" commercial of 2003 with Bob Dylan and her solo Victoria's Secret's Super Bowl XLII ad, the single most-seen ad of the game, watched by 103.7 million viewers. 2008 continued for Lima with hosting the What Is Sexy? program for the E! Entertainment Network and a July tour for the BioFit Uplift Bra launch, with stops in Long Island, Boston, and Miami Beach. She was also featured in November's Miracle Bra relaunch. Topping the year off, Lima wore the "Fantasy Bra" for the 2008 Victoria's Secret Fashion Show.

Lima's first acting role was the wife, alongside Mickey Rourke and Forest Whitaker, in The Follow (2001), a short film in BMW's series The Hire, starring Clive Owen. She also appeared with her fellow Angels in a guest spot playing herself in the series How I Met Your Mother in November 2007.

In 2008, Lima appeared on the American television series Ugly Betty, where she played herself and made friends with the series' title character, played by America Ferrera. According to her publicist, Liza Anderson, "Adriana has always been a huge fan of Ugly Betty and is thrilled for the opportunity to make a guest star appearance."

Lima does charitable work helping with an orphanage, "Caminhos da Luz" (Ways of Light), located in her hometown. She helps with construction to expand the orphanage, and buys clothes for poor children in Salvador, Bahia. She also stands for animal rights. She appeared on the Turkish version of Deal or No Deal where her prize money went to a hospital in Istanbul for Children fighting leukemia

In 2007, she ranked as the world's fourth highest paid model
Place of birth :-Salvador, Bahia, Brazil
Height :-5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)
Hair color :-Brown
Eye color :-Blue
Measurements :- 88-61-90 (34-24-35)
Dress size :-4 (US)
Shoe size :- 8.5 (US)
Agency :-Marilyn Agency