Bar Refaeli was born on June 4, 1985, in a rural region of Israel. She was raised on a horse ranch, but her countryside origins never inhibited her imagination. She started modeling before she could even walk and talk. At 8 months old, Bar Refaeli was already doing commercials.

After starting her career before she was even 1 year old, Bar Refaeli had to undergo that traumatic experience that every child fears: getting braces. Of course, getting braces quickly derailed her modeling career. So, for over three years, Bar Refaeli resorted back to her normal life -- a life void of modeling.

When the braces came off in 1997, however, Bar Refaeli wasted no time getting right back into the industry. At the tender age of 11, she burst back onto the modeling scene and has been there ever since. She then appeared in numerous advertisements and infomercials in Israel.

Bar Refaeli’s rise to prominence seemed to happen overnight. At the age of 15, Bar began to modeling for catalogs such as Castro and Pilpel. Her undeniable good looks made her an automatic interest for most international magazines and covers.

The turn of the century marked a sign of good things to come for the Israeli vixen. In 2000, she won the title of Model of the Year in a beauty contest, and in 2001, she won her title yet again, as her beauty and modeling talents couldn't be denied. In 2002 and 2003, she was chosen to be the home model of the Renuar fashion network. Additionally, Bar Refaeli was selected for an international fashion production and appeared in the French ELLE magazine.

It was during her rise to prominence that she attained gigs with GQ and Ralph Lauren. However, Bar Refaeli claimed that it was the editorial section in an issue of ELLE France that laid claim to her celebrity. The editorial section attached her name with the face that so many people were becoming accustomed to seeing, and once her name was attached a celebrity was born.

Bar Refaeli ended up doing photo shoots with Sports Illustrated magazine and Victoria’s Secret. Her career has essentially grown right in front of our eyes; she has developed a sense of how to work in front of a camera, and photographers like working with her more and more. She says that working with photographers is “a cooperation between the model and the photographers.”

Bar Refaeli has lived the life of a glamorous international supermodel. She graced cover after cover and has worked with the most major brands in the world. In early 2007, Bar Refaeli landed more work with SI, and signed a deal with Chanel’s makeup brand.

Putting her at an even higher pinnacle of celebrity, her once-romantic link with award-winning actor Leonardo DiCaprio speaks mounds for her popularity.

In 2007, Bar Refaeli was also awarded "Sexiest Import" at the 2007 Spike TV Guys' Choice Awards. So it's no wonder AskMen.com readers put Bar so high up on their 2008 Top 99 list.

Bar Refaeli also appeared in the February 2008 Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue.

Sexiness

Leonardo DiCaprio is famous for going after the world's most beautiful women (note: Gisele Bundchen, Eva Herzigova, Amber Valletta, and Helena Christensen), and he was all over Bar Refaeli when he first met her. He even introduced her to his family in September 2006.

Bar Refaeli's slender physique with its curvaceous nature is practically perfect, and her tantalizing gaze could make you renounce your religion. So rarely does a light-haired, pale-eyed woman look exotic, but Bar Refaeli is just that. And the best part is that there’s no artificial manipulation of this naturally exquisite beauty.

Success

While Bar Refaeli’s accomplishments are numerous, they still are one-dimensional. But what a dimension it is! She has signed more deals than your average NBA draft pick. Having landed contracts with some of the biggest brands in advertising, and having been on so many magazine covers, it’s as if Bar has already lived a full life.

Bar Refaeli’s accomplishments have led to an exuberance of fame. When you grace the cover of ELLE France four times in a period of two months, you’re going to have a lot of French gentlemen saying “Oui! Oui!” And she certainly has graced the rest of the world with her sexiness, appearing in magazines such as Sports Illustrated and the Victoria's Secret catalog (which is considered to be the “who’s who?” magazine for models).