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Elsa Benítez (born on December 8, 1977 in Hermosillo, Sonora, Mexico) is a Mexican model perhaps best known for her 2001 Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue cover.

Career

Benítez, who held Linda Evangelista as one of her childhood idols, began modeling after winning an international model search in Costa Rica in 1995. She subsequently began modeling in Mexico, the United States and Europe. She rose to prominence after being chosen by photographer Steven Meisel^{clarification needed} and being featured many times in the US and Italian editions of Vogue for Meisel's layouts.

In 1996, she appeared on the cover of Vogue (Italy) three times, for the April, August and September covers. Since signing with Elite Model Management, she has also appeared on the covers of ELLE, Glamour, Mademoiselle, Harper's Bazaar, and Marie Claire. Benítez has also done advertising campaign work for Dolce & Gabbana, Macy's, Episode, I-N-C, J.Crew, Óscar de la Renta, Rena Lange, Nine West, Valentino, and Jones New York, and has modeled for Victoria's Secret. Benítez appeared in the 1999 Pirelli Calendar that featured "Women Through the Decades." She was photographed as a representative of the "groovy '70s."

She also appeared in Enrique Iglesias' music video "Love to See You Cry" in 2002. In 2003, she appeared in the ad for the perfume Mahora Guerlain, which was shot by Bruno Aveillan.

Benítez was selected to be on the cover of the 2001 Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue. She has appeared in the Swimsuit Edition five times since her debut in the magazine. For the Miss Universe 2004 competition, Benítez was one of the judges. In the 2004 issue, Sports Illustrated reported Benítez's story of nearly boarding the doomed TWA Flight 800–a Boeing 747 that exploded over the Atlantic soon after takeoff. She was crying on the phone to her husband and said, "I feel something is going to happen on the flight."^{citation needed} Her husband told her not to worry, but she continued to cry. She changed her ticket and took off ten minutes after TWA Flight 800. "It made me appreciate so much that just being alive is a gift."^{citation needed}

Benítez plans to enter the film industry and as such has taken acting lessons. She hopes to work in both Spanish and English language films.

Lawsuit

Benítez is involved in a lawsuit against several websites and a paparazzi agency after an invasion of privacy issue, where nude sunbathing pictures were taken and sold to web publications.¹

Personal life

She married former NBA player, Rony Seikaly -- 12 years her senior -- in September 1999, and she filed for divorce in August 2005. They have one daughter together, Mila. In 2007 Benítez began dating Italian movie producer Valerio Morabito.

References