Irina Shayk, sometimes credited as Irina Sheik, born Irina on January 6, 1986 inYemanzhelinsk, Russia is a Russian model known for her 2007 through 2012 appearances in the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue. She was the cover model for the 2011 issue. Shayk was born in Yemanzhelinsk, Russia. She says she inherited her unusual looks from her father, and she has said that people often think she is South American. “My father was dark skinned, because he was Tatar. Sometimes Tatars can look Brazilian,” she says. “I get my light eyes from my mother.” Shayk’s mother was a pianist who was the music teacher in a kindergarten, and her father was a coal miner. She has one sibling, an older sister named Tatiana. Shayk started playing piano at age six. At age nine she enrolled in a music school and studied there for seven years, both playing the piano and singing in the choir since her mother wanted her to study music. Her father died of complications of pneumonia when she was 14, leaving her family with little money and forcing her mother to work two jobs to provide for the family.
Shayk started her career relatively late for a model, at the age of 19, when she began modeling in Paris. In 2007 she replaced Ana Beatriz Barros as the face of Intimissimi and in the same year debuted in the annual Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue. Since that time, she has appeared in every annual edition, attending photoshoots in such places as St. Petersburg, Naples, Grenada and Chile. After high school, Shayk studied marketing but was bored by it and entered a local beauty school with her elder sister. While there, she was noticed by a person from a local modeling agency who was struck by her unusual beauty. She was urged to participate in the “Miss Chelyabinsk 2004″ beauty contest, and she won. After being the image of Intimissimi for three years (six seasons), Shayk was made the official ambassador for the brand in 2010. Her other modeling contracts include Beach Bunny (2009), and Guess spring/summer 2009. Other work include the Victoria’s Secret catalog, Lacoste and Cesare Paciotti. Her magazine covers include Annabelle, Bolero,Woman, Jalouse, and Paris Capital.
On the February 14, 2011 episode of The Late Show with David Letterman, it was revealed via billboard that Shayk was the covermodel for the 2011 Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue. This is the fifth time she has been featured in the magazine, but the first time she has been on the cover. She is the first Russian to appear on the cover. Shayk became the face of swim label Luli Fama’s 2011 advertising campaign and look book. Appears in the John John Denim ad campaign. Shayk modeled the Armani Exchange spring/summer 2010 campaign. She also starred in Kanye West’s “Power”, directed by artist Marco Brambilla. She was on the cover of Ocean Drive and GQ South Africa for the August issue. She ranked first in the “50 Hottest Russian Women” list by Complex magazine.
She made a change from swimwear to high fashion with a spread in Spain’s Harper’s Bazaar and landed the cover of Elle Spain for their November 2010 issue. Glamour Spain awarded her “Best International Model of 2010″. At the end of the year she was pictured nude in the GQ Spain December issue; however, she claimed that she had not stripped for the photoshoot, and that the magazine had digitally altered the images to remove her lingerie.
She currently ranks 10th in the “Top 20 Sexiest Models” list on Models.com. In 2011 she was voted “Sexiest Woman In The World” in the Hungarian magazine Periodika. On February 2011 she covered Tatler magazine Russia. She also covered Harper’s Bazaar Mexico, wearing a Victoria Beckham dress. She also featured in campaign for Rampage, replacing Bar Rafaeli, and for Replay. On november 2011 she covered Amica Italia and later, on december she covered Elle Spain the special edition for christmas. On February 2012 she covered Esquire UK. On February 2012 she signed with the Danish modeling agency 1st Option Model Management. Shayk is helping a maternity hospital in her hometown of Yemanzhelinsk. She and her sister helped rebuild the children’s ward of the local hospital, and now Shayk raises money on behalf of a Russian charity, Pomogi, meaning “Help me” in Russian, which provides care to sick children. Irina is the official ambassador for Pomogi charity in Russia.
Shayk has a pet dog named Caesare (named after Julius Caesar), a Lab which, she claims, was fathered by one of the dogs who played the title role in Marley & Me. Since May/Spring of 2010, she has been dating footballer Cristiano Ronaldo. Shayk and Ronaldo allegedly met through their Armani Exchange campaigns.
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