Russian supermodel from Gorky (Russia)
Born in Gorky, USSR (now Nizhny Novgorod, Russia), Natalia Vodianova grew up in a poor district of the city with her mother and two half sisters, one of whom has cerebral palsy. As a teenager, Vodianova helped her mother sell fruit on the street and later set up her own fruit stand with a friend to help her family out of poverty.
Vodianova's father walked out on the family when Natalia was a toddler, and she did not have any further contact with him until after she had become famous.
At the age of 15, Vodianova enrolled in a modelling academy, was told she would need to learn English to succeed, and mastered the language in three months. By the age of 17, Vodianova had moved to Paris, and signed with Viva Models.
Born in Gorky, USSR (now Nizhny Novgorod, Russia), Natalia Vodianova grew up in a poor district of the city with her mother and two half sisters, one of whom has cerebral palsy. As a teenager, Vodianova helped her mother sell fruit on the street and later set up her own fruit stand with a friend to help her family out of poverty.
Vodianova's father walked out on the family when Natalia was a toddler, and she did not have any further contact with him until after she had become famous.
At the age of 15, Vodianova enrolled in a modelling academy, was told she would need to learn English to succeed, and mastered the language in three months. By the age of 17, Vodianova had moved to Paris, and signed with Viva Models.
