PUBLISHED: 07:00 EDT, 17 October 2023
UPDATED: 07:05 EDT, 17 October 2023
'My mom brought me a box of lots of old pictures out of the basement.'
Heidi took part in a national modelling contest called Model 92 after a friend persuaded her to enter when she was just 19.
Out of 25,000 contestants, Heidi was voted the winner on 29 April 1992 and she was offered a modeling contract worth $$300,000 by Thomas Zeumer, CEO of Metropolitan Models New York.
After the victory, Heidi appeared on the Gottschalk Late Night Show, a German television show with host Thomas Gottschalk.
The supermodel accepted the contract a few months later after graduating from school.
Heidi decided to pursue a career in modelling rather than try for an apprentice position at a fashion design school.
At 21, Heidi appeared on the cover of Mirabella magazine and within the next few years was featured in Vogue, ELLE, and Marie Claire.
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