NOW IN TOWN: JULIA JOHANSEN

Welcome to London to beautiful Julia Johansen. The 20 year old from Finland will be meeting London clients for the next few weeks, and with those pretty freckles and perfect pout we're sure they're going to fall for her straight away!

ONE TO WATCH: KELLY MOREIRA

ANOTHER amazing girl from Elite Model Look? Yes please! Meet Kelly Moreira, who sent her photos in for the contest just 3 months ago. When the SS10 show season got underway she was preparing for the Elite Model Look France Final, and by the time the circus rolled into Paris she was the must-book new face of the season, racking up appearances at Lanvin, Yves Saint Laurent and Dries Van Noten. Absolutely one to watch, and we can't wait to see her in London soon...

Kelly rocks Lanvin in her debut season

AMY for NIVEA

Hot on the heels of her work with Bourjois, The Body Shop and Avon, Amy Hanson's latest beauty campaign is for Nivea's cosmetic collaboration with luxury lingerie giant Chantal Thomass. Our very English Amy pulls of this very sexy campaign in style... and we love that trademark Chantal Thomass wig!! Have a look at the print campaign on Nivea's mini-site HERE and see the TV commercial below.

A BIG NIGHT IN CHINA

ELITE MODEL LOOK WORLD FINAL

The contest started with 350'000 worldwide applicants... the final 70 spent two weeks at model boot camp in beautiful southern China and after were eventually whittled down from 70 to15. On the night of the final show, the top four new faces for the Elite network were named... congratulations girls, and especially to our Emily!

The girls can look forward to an exciting future at the very top of the fashion industry, after all they are following in the footsetps of supermodel greats Cindy, Gisele, Christy and Linda, who all got their big break at ELITE MODEL LOOK. And current campaign queens Sigrid, Constance and Denisa all started here too... the future looks bright!

Maria Sharapova goes down to seventeen year old American Melanie Oudin

Seventeen year old American rising tennis sensation, Melanie Oudin, ousted media darling and reigning tennis glamor queen, Maria Sharapova, from the 2009 US Open Tennis Champships. Cheered on by the excited crowd Oudin forced a third set after taking the second set from Sharapova who won the first 6 games to 4.
In her post match interview Sharapova was asked if she agrees with Jelana Jankovic’s assesent that Oudin doesn’t have many weapons and isn’t very impressive though she’s beating top-ranked players. Sharapova called Jankovic’s remarks shocking and said of Oudin’s play:

"I thought she played really well. I thought she has many weapons. You know, she certainly held her ground. I mean, you know, I still feel like I had my chances, even though it wasn’t my best day. You know, when you let those chances go, it’s just frustrating. But, I mean, got to hand it to her. She really stuck to her game plan. She played solid. She made me hit a lot of balls. She moved really well around the court, yeah."

BLANKA'S AUTUMN TV CAMPAIGN FOR DEBENHAMS

We love our beautiful brunette Blanka's slinky new TV commercial for Debenhams, currently airing across all major channels....

Maria Sharapova, New number 2!

Maria Sharapova, continues to gain strength on tour and in our polling. Maria, after a slow start, generated 16% of 2nd Quarter voting, second only to Paula Creamer at 17%.

At the end of 2Q 2009, our highest vote total ever, Paul Creamer remains atop our hottest babe's list. Paula is extending her 2008 domination of our list midway through the 2009 season.

Current rankings for year to date performance:

2009 Rank	Player	Total	2008 Finish
1	Paula Creamer	27.81	1
2	Maria Sharapova	15.85	3
3	Ana Ivanovic	14.49	2
4	Natalie Gulbis	13.95	5
5	Maria Kirilenko	11.90	6
6	Maria Verchenova	10.89	10
7	Elena Dementieva	9.83	4
8	Cristie Kerr	9.18	7
9	Anna Kournikova	8.41	14
10	Daniela Hantuchova	5.16	11
11	Anna Rawson	3.99	9
12	Alona Bondarenko	3.50	12
13	Sophie Sandolo	2.74	15
14	Kim Hall	1.02	8
15	Ashley Harkleroad	0.91	13

Sharapova getting back to her best

TOKYO — Maria Sharapova says she is getting back to her best and enjoying herself after a long injury lay-off that forced her out of top 10 for the first time since July 2004.

"As far as being back onto the court and playing tennis and hitting a tennis ball with a tennis racket, I say, I went out of the tunnel," said Sharapova after regaining the Pan Pacific Open title on Saturday that she last won in 2005.

"Because that was taken away from me for a long period of time. It's a big part of your life and it was taken away.

"It's a strange feeling, but you've got to do everything you can to get out of the situation, to be back in life, enjoy what you love. I'm back on the court, I'm playing again, I'm competing," said the Russian.

In October last year, Sharapova had an operation on her right shoulder and then pulled out of the Australian Open in January with the same injury. She only returned to action in May.

On Saturday in the final against Jelena Jankovic of Serbia, Sharapova found herself 0-40 down in the opening game, which she lost two points later, hitting a backhanded drop shot wide.

She then went 0-2 down before moving into top gear, hitting an array of power-packed strokes and aggressive service returns to take the following four games in a row.

Jankovic, who needed court-side treatment to her right arm in the semi-finals on Friday, took a medical time-out for the same injury at the beginning of the eighth game.

But Jankovic abandoned the match when she went down love-30.

It was Sharapova's fourth title in Tokyo out of her 20 singles titles worldwide. Tokyo is the place where she captured her first WTA singles and doubles titles at the 2003 Japan Open on the same centre court here.

"I just have really good memories from playing on this court. It was a different tournament, but the same arena. It's very exciting. This is a place very close to my heart and I always want to come back," said Sharapova.

The 22-year-old Russian, the winner of the 2004 Wimbledon, the 2006 US Open and the 2008 Australian Open, is already looking forward to the next season in which she believes she can do better than before.

"I have one more tournament left in Beijing. During the off-season, I'll be training and working on my game. It's going to be really a good time for me to create a good base," said Sharapova.

"Actually I have a good enough time to prepare for the next year. I'm really looking forward to the period.

"Certainly I worked hard to play tennis. That's what I tried, because I know I can be better, making it better than I've done before. And the fact that I'm back and that I'm hungry, that's something I proved," she added.

OUTI IS ONE 2 WATCH

It doesn't seem possible that just a couple of months ago 16 year old Outi Ranua was finishing school in a village in Finland, but after we snapped her up in that scout's paradise of Topshop Oxford Circus, this glacial new face hasn't looked back. See her now at The Ones to Watch where she features in Nadya Wasylko's story - It's Not What She Said... it's How She Said It.

Maria Sharapova shines at Pan Pacific Open

Maria Sharapova overwhelmed Samantha Stosur of Australia in a swift 6-0, 6-1 victory on Tuesday at the Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo.
The former world No 1 fired seven aces and hit a first-serve percentage of 71, in addition to a barrage of sizzling shots that ended the match in 57 minutes at the Ariake Colosseum.

However, Sharapova admits she may no longer be feared.

The Russian said she was grateful for her "second career" after a nightmare injury lay-off and insisted she had the tools to return to the top of the women's game.

"In some way I wish I could say I was vacationing for 10 months and then all of a sudden I kind of wanted to play again," Sharapova said.

"But every single day I was trying to find a way to get back out there. It's hard when something is taken away from you. For me it was about three or four months where I really didn't pick up a racket.

"That was the first time in my life I've had to do that since I started playing tennis. It was really strange waking up and knowing you're not going to go out on the court."

Sharapova has climbed to 25th in the world since returning to action in May after shoulder surgery.

The three-times grand slam singles champion said she had reached a different stage in her career.

"It's obviously like a second career in a way when you're almost out of the rankings and you're working your way up and you're not feared anymore," she said.

Sharapova's victory over Stosur propelled the former Tokyo champion into the last 16.

Yet to add to her 19 career singles titles since her return, Sharapova insisted she would be a major force again.

"Grand slams are still the focus," the 22 year-old said. "I know if I do well and perform at a certain level which I know I can then those goals will be met."

ELITE MODEL LOOK - THE WINNERS

17 year old Julia celebrates her win

We've already been shouting about the brilliant Emily Smith's podium placing at the Elite Model Look World Final in Sanya at the weekend, but we met so many great Elite girls of the future at the event that we couldn't wait to start sharing some of them too...

L-R: Manon, Caterina, Emily & Julia

We loved all 4 of the winners - 1st place went to classically elegant Julia Saner from Switzerland, 2nd to the elfin Caterina Ravaglia from Italy, and 3rd jointly between our Emily and the amazonian Manon Pieto from France, all perfect examples of the kind of girls we expect from Elite Model Look. Our team also liked the Serbian contestant Simona, Spanish girl Gracia, and Sarah J from the US. 


Keep an eye on our FACEBOOK PAGE for full photo albums of the 2 week event...

A DOROTHEA DOUBLE BILL!

Dorothea for Burberry Blue Label

Given Dorothea's flood of current editorials - see her in Love, Vogue Japan (both ph. Willy Vanderperre), Vogue Italia (ph. Steven Meisel), and W (ph. Paolo Roversi) all out now - it's amazing she had time to fit in anything else, but somehow she's squeezed the Burberry Blue campaign into her schedule. Photographed by Lachlan Bailey and styled by Elliott Smedley, we think she bears more than a little resemblance to Burberry girl Emma Watson in the new shots. She's also seriously in-demand in her home market of Sweden too, and with work like this new advertorial for H&M, we can see why.

H&M for Elle, ph. Andreas Sjodin

ELITE GIRLS SHINE IN PARIS

We love a good bit of fashion spectacle, and for SS10 the showdown was surely a dead heat between Alexander McQueen and Viktor and Rolf. McQueen's digitally printed minidresses were almost outshone by the incredible shoes, apocalyptic backstory and film prequel, while Vicktor and Rolf showed pretty much the most architectural pieces on the schedule, offset with a giant globe and the seasons' top musical cameo from Roisin Murphy. With 6 Elite London girls in McQueen (Constance, Charlotte, Kate, Yulia, Egle and Anastasija) and 3 in V&R (Olga, Constance and Egle) our loyaties are divided - we're just pleased that nobody did a Naomi on those terrifying heels!

Yulia Lobova at Alexander McQueen SS10 and Olga Sherer for Viktor & Rolf SS10

See the full McQueen show on the SHOWstudio website and watch the Viktor and Rolf show on their own site HERE 

Sharapova faces strong field in Tokyo

TOKYO — Crowd favourite Maria Sharapova returns to Tokyo where she won her first career WTA title six years ago to face a strong field at the Pan Pacific Open tennis tournament.

Twenty five out of the top 30 players in the world will take part in the two-million-dollar event, which gets under way on Sunday on the outdoor hard courts at the Ariake Coliseum.

Australian Open and Wimbledon champion Serena Williams withdrew with knee and toe injuries, joining Amelie Mauresmo of France with a stomach pain and Dominika Cibulkova of Slovakia with a side injury.

Sharapova, the Russian former world number one who won the 2003 Japan Open singles and doubles titles for her first titles on the centre court here, suffered a right shoulder injury that saw her withdraw from the Australian Open.

Sharapova, currently ranked 25th this week, came back in action in May and reached the quarter-finals at the French Open, the semi-finals at Los Angeles and the final at Toronto.

It will be her first appearance on court since her surprise third-round defeat to up-and-coming American Melanie Oudin.

Sharapova, also the winner here in 2005, will play Francesca Schiavone of Italy in the first round, while the top eight women, led by defending champion Dinara Safina of Russia, will receive the first-round byes.

Sharapova was drawn in the same quarter with top-seeded Safina, another Russian Vera Zvonareva, Virginie Razzano of France and Australia's Samantha Stosur.

Also in the upper half were French Open champion Svetlana Kuznetsova of Russia, US Open runner-up Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark, Agnieszka Radwanska of Poland and Nadia Petrova of Russia.

Second seed Venus Williams will lead the bottom half, which includes Beijing Olympic champion Elena Dementieva of Russia, former number one Jelena Jankovic of Serbia and Victoria Azarenka of Belarus.

Serbian Ana Ivanovic, China's Li Na, Marion Bartoli of France and Italy's Flavia Pennetta will challenge the top four players in the bottom half.

It will be the last tournament for former world doubles number one Ai Sugiyama of Japan, who has announced her retirement. Sugiyama will play 13th seed Petrova in the first round.

MELO ON THE RISE

Matthew Williamson SS10

Melo Dagault's busy year looks like getting even more hectic after a stellar show season... some of our favourite London moments for this sweetest of the new French girls included turns at Matthew Williamson and Louise Goldin - whose architectural shapes suited Melo's powerful look perfectly. She's already been shot by the likes of Demarchelier, Bruce Weber and Emma Summerton, and with Numero (shot by Greg Kadel) and Pop (with Tung Walsh) out now we are predicting a manic end of the year for this much in-demand madamoiselle.

Numero 106, Sept09 ph. Greg Kadel

Louise Goldin SS10

EMILY DOES UK PROUD AT EML WORLD FINAL

Just in from China - great news that one of our UK contestants, Emily Smith has won the 2nd runner up spot at the Elite Model Look World Final.

15 year old Hampshire girl Emily impressed the jury over 2 weeks of photo shoots and events, culminating in the showpiece final in Sanya tonight. Her incredible skin and hair and classic English look won over agents from across the entire Elite network – some of the guests at the event loved her so much that they even booked her for her first editorial and shot it the day after the final! We’ll be looking out for her in the January issue of Flavor…

Congratulations Emily, and also to our two other Elite London contestants Beth and Nyasha, who also did the agency and themselves proud.

KATE STRIDES UP A STORM

Kate Somers knocked out a serious sleeper season, quietly sneaking up every casting director's wishlist and turning in an SS10 featuring a bunch of top drawer shows. She started off with the Marc Jacobs double in New York, booked her way through the likes of Luella and all the hot one-to-watch shows in London, turned in a slick stride for Moschino C&C in Milan, and rounded things off with a major Paris - Comme de Garcons, McQueen and Louis Vuitton all featured in this girl's busy October diary. With 3 Dazed editorials and a couple of classy campaigns already under her belt, we can't wait to see what this quirky Canadian will do next...

ELITE ♥ CHINA

It’s a busy week for the network as Elite agents and scouts from all over the globe descend on southern China for the Elite 26^th Model Look World Final. After the success of our inaugural Elite Model Look UK this August, we are thrilled to have 3 girls representing Elite London at the World Final. We wish all the best to Nyasha Matonhodze, Emily Smith and Bethany Leader (below, left to right), who have spent the last 2 weeks with the rest of the contestants preparing for the final in the beautiful beach resort of Sanya. We’re also keeping an eye out for the Czech contestant Marketa Fridichova – we liked her so much when we saw her pictures from her national final that we snapped her up straight away.

Follow the contest at the Elite Model Look World Final website HERE


GOOD LUCK GIRLS!

CONSTANCE IS SS10’s MOST WANTED WALK!

Of the moment Constance Jablonski booked the most shows of any girl across the SS10 season, according to the Fashion Spot’s seasonal rundown. With a staggering 72 shows across the 4 cities, the appetite for Miss J shows no signs of slowing down, and after seeing her through as many as 7 shows in a single day in London we couldn’t be happier to see Constance and her killer stride out there in front. Her highlights included (New York), Paul Smith (London), (Milan), (Paris).  Other Elite girls who made the magic 10 included Charlotte di Calpyso (number 6) and Dorothea Barth-Jorgensen (number 10).

exotic Maria Sharapova gallery

HELLO FEI FEI!

We are pleased to welcome our first Chinese model to the board at Elite London - Fei Fei Sun joins us from Elite China, having won the Elite Model Look China contest last year and placing 3rd in the 2008 World Final. She's already on her second Shanghai Tang campaign and has Vogue China hitting newsstands very soon. In the meantime this fab new editorial on her is just in...

Welcome, Fei Fei!

ANASTASIJA'S HAIR RAISING SEASON

Anastasija Kondratjeva wound up her show season this weekend with yet another incredible hairstyle at Louis Vuitton, topping off a season of epic hair. From a Japanese style topknot at Marc Jacobs to architecural cones at McQueen and the giant bleached wig at Vuitton, Anastasija has pulled off a string of fabulous looks. But not only can she rock the most extreme of the coiffeurs fantasies, she was just as great in the elegant 1930s look at Dries Van Noten and in Sophia Kokosolaki's tousled style as well. This girl is versatile! We're sure that like all the show girls, her hair is ready for a rest though!

SESSILEE GETS HOTLISTED

Grazia's review of London Fashion Week was good news for Sessilee Lopez, who they named as their top model to watch for the SS10 season. Eagle eyes from their fashion team then, as Sessilee went on to book some big-hitting catwalk appearances in Milan and Paris, including Dolce & Gabbana, Hermes, and the opening slot at Jean Paul Gaultier.

Read the full story HERE

Maria Sharapova belly button