| Born in Gorky (now Nizhny Novgorod), Russia's third largest city, she lived with her mother and two half-sisters in unpleasant conditions. Her mother's abusive boyfriends and a tight financial situation dogged her throughout childhood. Helping her mother with her fruit stall business at the age of 11, Vodianova moved into her own apartment with a friend at 15 years old. They started their own fruit stall to help out the struggling family and were actually quite successful, all things considered. They were able to help out Vodianova's sisters, one of whom is an invalid. Just before moving, Vodianova enrolled in a modeling academy, where she learned ladylike behavior and etiquette. Fortunately, she also went to casting opportunities, and one day, she caught the eye of a scouting agent from Paris. He told her that a great future was in store for her; all she had to do was learn English in three months. Convinced that her life could change for the better, Vodianova did just that. At 17, she moved to Paris to try her hand at modeling. Delighted to work, she was a client for the Viva agency. Soon, Gucci made her the new face for their perfume line, after she had more than 40 runway shows under her belt, and then Calvin Klein called to hire her for their big spring show. She was officially the notable new face in town and even made a brief appearance in Roman Coppola's film CQ, with Billy Zane. Now, Vodianova has campaigns for Louis Vuitton, Marc Jacobs, Miss Sixty and Calvin Klein's collection and his fragrance, "Euphoria," to her name. She met British real estate heir, Justin Trevor Berkeley Portman, a half-brother of the 10th Viscount Portman, and gave birth to their son, Lucas Alexander, on December 22, 2001. She posed with her baby in Vogue. On September 1, 2002, Vodianova and Portman married in a lavish ceremony in Saint Petersburg. Their second child, daughter Neva (named after the Russian river, Neva) was born on March 24, 2006. Vodianova remarked that her daughter was, "a whole centimeter longer than Lucas was at birth, and he's pretty tall, so I can only imagine how tall Neva is going to be!"
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