AMSTERDAM (AP) - A former winner of the television show “Holland’s Next Top Model” has won a lawsuit against Elite Model Management after she was dropped for having hips the agency considered too large.
The Amsterdam District Court ruled Wednesday that Ananda Marchildon, now 25, was entitled to the main prize she won in the 2008 production of the show, a three-year contract worth euro75,000 ($98,500).
Marchildon argued she was dismissed after only euro10,000 ($13,000) worth of work because she didn’t lose enough weight to please the agency.
According to the written ruling, though Marchildon had gained weight since getting the contract, she had a hip measurement of 92 centimeters (about 36.2 inches) when she won, and Elite could not demand that she go down to 90 centimeters _ about 35.4 inches. That is far smaller than the average woman’s hips but not unusual in the modeling world.
“I was right, after all,” she said Wednesday in a reaction published by Dutch daily NRC Handelsblad. “I hope that makers and participants reconsider the structure of this kind of program.”
Marchildon’s lawyer said she would comment further after she finishes the day’s shift at her new job _ as a carpenter.
The fashion industry has often faced criticism for creating unrealistic expectations about women’s bodies and forcing models to undergo harmful diets.
Modeling agencies say that they respond to the demands of advertisers, and ultimately clothing customers: a model that doesn’t look right won’t get work.
The court’s ruling included an email exchange between the 180-centimeter-tall (5 foot, 11 inch) model and a representative of Elite in the Netherlands whose name was redacted.
“We agreed that you would come by us every two weeks for an evaluation, how it’s going with your diet and exercise and losing weight. We’re going to keep measuring you,” the Elite representative wrote.
“Today, March 23 2010, we measured your hips at 98 centimeters. This is a reminder! The goal is that you have a hip circumference of no more than 90 centimeters at the end of June.”
Marchildon responded that she would regain her former shape, and not more. “If at the end of the road it appears that unfortunately not enough assignments have come in, that doesn’t change the obligations of the contract,” she wrote.
The ruling said that Marchildon returned to a 92-centimeter measure by June, but the model and agency parted ways in September 2010.
Elite spokeswoman Rita Camelli in Milan, Italy, said the agency was “disappointed” with the ruling and is now considering its options.
“We felt we were in the right,” she said.
Elite released a statement noting that it had taken over Marchildon’s contract from her former agency and that Elite itself never had a written agreement with her. It did not say whether it plans to appeal.
The court awarded Marchildon around euro65,000 ($85,000) in damages, plus interest and legal fees.
In the Netherlands, underwear company Sloggi hired Marchildon for a one-time shoot Monday to show that she is still fit for modeling work.
“It’s too crazy for words that a model who’s her size would be written off as too fat,” said spokeswoman Monica van Alewijn, saying that Marchildon is thinner today than most models the company uses.
“She’s just a beautiful woman, and for heaven’s sake she shouldn’t starve herself,” she said.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.