Natalia Vodianova: They say that Russia is the new Brazil. If that means as much to you as flopping the nuts on the river and sucking out does to someone who doesn’t play poker, you are not alone.

What it means, apparently, is that Russia has replaced Brazil as the latest hot spot for emerging beauties that skyrocket from anonymity to superstardom by way of the runway. That’s the fashion runway, as in modeling. Well, even if you’ve no clue of the difference between haute couture and haute cuisine, you’ve still likely caught a glimpse of Natalia Vodianova, especially if you’ve lingered over any Calvin Kline ads recently.

Natalia’s been in a few of those, as well as cover shoots for Vogue, W, Vanity Fair, Elle and quite a few other magazines. What makes her special, outside of being born with retro-beauty and that special something that makes a camera lenses melt, is her Cinderella story.

Natalia was born in Russia, some 400 miles from Moscow, in 1982. She was not born into affluence, spending time selling fruit in the streets at the age of 15 just to help her family survive. Once she found modeling, or when modeling found her, things began to change. Her career started in Europe and quickly took off. A film has been made chronicling her travels from Russia to France, from France to England, and from England to the USA. She’s gone from street vendor to supermodel, with homes around the globe, and is married with one son.

Her husband, Justin Portman, accompanied Natalia to the World Poker Tour’s Invitational, an event that is a favorite among the players and the fans alike, precisely because people like Natalia show up. All the poker bug-bitten celebs do, from Ben Affleck to Lou Diamond Philips and Jennifer Tilley.  While uncertain of exactly just good of a player Natalia is, one would hope she is good enough for two things to happen; first, that Gucci’s poster girl will continue to show up at the Invitationals and even more poker events, and second, that she is able to last long enough for everyone to enjoy her presence at the tables.