By Laurie Brookins, Photographs: Daniela Federici

arolina Kurkova is hoping you didn't notice the moment every model dreads, which befell the 5-foot, 11-inch blonde beauty during her appearance in last year's Victoria's Secret fashion show. But if you did notice? Well, so be it.

"I had just walked onstage in my second outfit, and my whole shoe completely fell off," Kurkova remembers. "I had to walk the whole runway down and back on one shoe, which was about 12 inches high, and tiptoeing on the other foot. I couldn't believe how many people called me the next day to tell me they saw it and how impressed they were by how I handled it. You always have a fear of something like that happening -- especially when you know there's a billion people watching around the world--but in the end, it was a great thing."

Kurkova sums it up thus because she figures she had two choices: "Either I could limp and mess up my moment or make it work on one shoe. And, you know, the show must go on."

At 23, Kurkova exudes a pragmatism that would be impressive on someone twice her age. Such an attitude is among the reasons she has vaulted into the stratosphere of top-earning supermodels: Earlier this year Forbes.com listed Kurkova at number eight, with a 2007 income estimated at $3.5 million; by contrast, Gisele Bundchen ranked number one with $33 million. While Bundchen's take is expected to drop in 2008 because she opted out of her Victoria's Secret contract in May, look for Kurkova's star to be on the rise--indeed, she'll take center stage again this year for the lingerie megabrand, which taped its annual angel-fest on November 15th in Los Angeles; the program airs on CBS at 10 p.m. on Tuesday, December 4th.

When I talked to Kurkova in late October, she was getting ready to head back to New York from Argentina, where she enjoys a bit of escape in the rural countryside roughly 45 minutes outside Buenos Aires. "I bought some land here, and I want to start building a house soon," she says. "I love New York, but it's important to have an escape, you know? It's so beautiful here, and all you hear are the birds -- no phones or computers or crazy cab drivers. I'm not saying I could live one without the other; it's just great to have the balance."

Kurkova would be the first to admit she never thought her life would comprise such pursuits when she was a gangly teenager playing basketball in her hometown of Decin, about 100 miles from Prague in the Czech Republic. Indeed, to say the world of push-up bras and angel wings is far removed from her upbringing would be a gross understatement, but perhaps that's precisely one of the reasons Kurkova loves to do this show. "It's pure fantasy," she says. "It's so different from a normal fashion show, where you have to walk it cold -- you know, down the runway, sharp turn and come back. With this you're having fun, laughing and interacting with the audience. You don't think, I'm going to be in my bra and panties; it's also wings and a coat or a hat. I'm definitely excited and scared at the same time. It's the biggest moment for the brand, and obviously that's a lot of pressure. And of course, the biggest fear: Don't fall."

With roughly seven years of experience behind her, it's doubtful that pratfalls often find their way into Kurkova's runway performance. She was 16 when she was spotted by a modeling agent, and up to that moment hadn't thought much about the world beyond gymnastics and basketball (the latter is due to genetics, as her father, Josef Kurka, is a former Czech basketball star well-known in Karolina's native country).

"Growing up, I never wore makeup or high heels or jewelry -- I was the sporty girl," Kurkova says. "It's pretty amazing the way life works out. Modeling has given me a lot of things and taught me a lot about me as a woman. I was very tall growing up, with athletic long legs and long arms, and I didn't know how to be comfortable in my body. Modeling changed that for me, because it teaches you to become comfortable with who you are in your own skin." Her sports background, meanwhile, likewise informed Kurkova's modeling career: "As an athlete, you learn about patience and discipline and professionalism. I feel very lucky to have had that training [before becoming a model]."

While Kurkova found steady work in Europe early in her career, her big break came when Miuccia Prada signed her to an exclusive contract for both the Prada and Miu Miu lines. Every other fashion house took notice, and since then Kurkova has worked both on the runway and in campaigns for everyone from Chanel and Yves Saint Laurent to Michael Kors and Tommy Hilfiger (according to her bio, she has appeared in more than 350 fashion shows). Kurkova moved to New York in the spring of 2000 and was on the cover of American Vogue by February 2001; by 2002, she had signed with Victoria's Secret. In addition to the shows and the catalog shoots, Kurkova, as one of the high-wattage women anointed with the title of VS Angel, also was among those to collaborate on the brand's latest fragrance, aptly titled Supermodel ...

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