An international catwalk model has been found dead at her Costa del Sol home.
The body of Cristina Perez Galcenco, the 21-year-old daughter of a retired Spanish footballer, was discovered in Caleta de Velez near Malaga on Tuesday.
Tributes were paid on Thursday night to the Lanzarote-born beauty, who had strutted catwalks around the world in cities including London, Madrid, Milan and Paris and was said to have had a promising career ahead of her.
Well-placed sources said her death wasn’t being treated as suspicious.
Graciela Suarez, director of a fashion event in Oviedo in northern Spain called Pasarela Campoamor, where Cristina first made her name as a teenager, said today: ‘I am devastated.’
As well as participating in events like Madrid Fashion Week, she also took part in ad campaigns for companies like Stradivarius, and presenting new fashion collections for the likes of Versace and Louis Vuitton.
Her body is expected to be transferred to Asturias in northern Spain, where she grew up, in the next few days, so her funeral can take place.
Cristina’s parents, former goalkeeper Nacho Perez, whose club sides included Sporting de Gijon and her Moldovan-born mum Tatiana Galcenco, have yet to comment on their social media.
Model Cristina Perez Galcenco (pictured) has been found dead at her Costa del Sol home
Photographer Xana de Jesus said in an emotional tribute: ‘I have no words for this sad news, except to tell her parents Tatiana Galcenco and Nacho Perez and her family that a star shines eternally in our hearts and that I offer my deepest condolences in such a time of grief.
‘I will never forget your words, Cris. You were and always will be a role model and an example to follow, both in your modelling career and as a person. I was very fortunate to have known you and worked with you. How unfair life is.’
Another heartbroken friend added: ‘Cristina is an angel and always was.’
Cristina said in a recent interview: ‘My job is to be the image of what a brand wants to represent to the public, whether through catwalks or advertising campaigns.
‘I always say that the most satisfying thing about this profession is the number of people, cultures and mentalities you get to know.
‘They are so different from your comfort zone that you have no choice but to grow and adapt to them; on the other hand, I feel that this comes with loneliness, which is the worst part of this job.
‘It is a fact that, being constantly on the move, no one in your close circle can keep up with you, so learning to get along with yourself is one of the most important things.’
She went on to admit that her immaturity when she started modelling had been an obstacle in confronting some of the difficulties associated with the job.
She was doing a course in Malaga around the time of her death.
