Raica Oliveira was born in the city of Niteri, Brazil, just across the bay from the hottest peninsula in the world, Rio de Janeiro. Born on January 22, 1984, the black-haired, olive-skinned Raica (pronounced “Hi-ka”) knew by age 10 that she would be a model.

Her career started in 1999, when she entered the Elite Model Look contest in Brazil. The 15-year-old stunner beat out no less than 30,000 girls for the winner’s title. She was promptly hauled to Nice, France for the final international competition, where she won second place.

Raica Oliveira’s career instantly took off. Throughout 2000, her first year as a professional, she sold her image to five campaigns and walked the runway a total of 76 times, in Milan, New York, Paris, and So Paulo. She had so many shoots and shows a day, she could only find time to eat a cookie between sets. But her energy seems inexhaustible, and Raica continues to astound her peers with her tireless dedication.

The Elite model agency signed Raica right away, but she couldn’t start working until she had a portfolio put together. It didn’t take long for Raica to land her first gig — with Christian Dior. It is said that three other girls showed up for that first shoot. But once the photographer laid his eyes on Raica, he sent the others packing, choosing to focus his time exclusively on her.

Along with one particularly sweltering shoot she did for Dior, Raica has rented her looks out to D&G, Ralph Lauren, Valentino, and Christian Dior. She has appeared in editorials for Elle, Vogue, Cosmopolitan, Marie Claire, and Harpers & Queen.

Raica Oliveira had planned to study philosophy in university, but will delay those plans until she retires, as planned, at the ripe old age of 22. Until then, Raica will most likely continue to live in New York with her mother.

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