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Her father was a mason and her
mother, a teacher. She became a model after being spotted at the age of 16
during a national talent search.
She was featured on the cover of the 2003 Sports Illustrated Swimsuit
Issue, and has also modeled for Victoria's Secret, and for many other
companies in the women's clothing market. On June 3, 2004, she was one of
the telecast judges during the 53rd annual Miss Universe competition in
Quito, Ecuador.
During the Indian Ocean earthquake of December 26, 2004, Petra was at the
Khao Lak resort in Thailand with her main photographer and fiancé, Simon
Atlee when a tsunami struck where they were staying. Initially, Atlee was
presumed missing, but his body was found and identified on March 3, 2005,
on the shores of Sumatra (near the epicenter of the earthquake that caused
the Tsunami).
Atlee was killed by drowning, and Němcová suffered a broken pelvis and
serious internal injuries, but she managed to hold onto the top of a palm
tree, reportedly for eight hours, until she was rescued by Thai civilians
and airlifted to an inland hospital nearby. Petra spent three weeks in a
Thai hospital, and then flew home to the Czech Republic, where she spent
an additional three weeks in the hospital. Atlee's body was not found
until over two months after the tsunami. Petra's first interview after her
near-death experience was with Diane Sawyer on ABC's Primetime Live, on
March 9, 2005. She has also spoken of her experiences on the "Coady Read
Live" program on CNN.
In 2005, Nemcova started The Happy Hearts Fund, a charitable campaign
after her survival and recovery from the Tsunami of 2004. It aims to
advocate and provide for disadvantaged youngsters who have had to endure
hardship and who are not receiving the essential and sustainable help they
need for healthy childhood development. It actively partners with
charities, donors and foundations committed to providing immediate,
tangible assistance for children.
Glamour magazine awarded Němcová a "Survivor Award" in 2005 for the way
she picked up her life following her tsunami ordeal; her comeback being
complete with her appearance in the 2006 Sports Illustrated swimsuit
issue. She also appeared in the 2007 British FHM calendar as Miss May. She
is now the host of TLC's A Model Life.
She wrote Love Always, Petra (ISBN 0446579130) published December 2005,
which tells of her early life under Communist rule in Czechoslovakia, her
entrance into the field of fashion and modeling, and her breakthrough into
Sports Illustrated, which was her springboard to becoming a supermodel.
She also tells of her life with Simon Atlee and how they fell in love and
became engaged to marry.
Nemcova has also moved on romantically, dating British singer James Blunt
in 2006.
On July 7, 2007 she was a presenter at the American leg of Live Earth. She
is currently working with HP computers to produce a multi-million dollar
TV and web campaign.
In July of 2007 Nemcova has become a vegan after learning about the
planet’s rapidly depleting fish stocks. The Czech Republic born model gave
up meat and dairy in February. |
