Originally from Olomouc, at age 19 Veronica moved to New York City, United States. Initially, she wanted to attend the Parsons School of Design, though she chose modeling instead and was signed by Next Model Management. She moved to Europe after it became clear that she would be more successful there. She is fluent in three languages and has degrees in Psychology and Education. She married hockey star, Petr Nedved, in July 2004, but they separated in the summer of 2006. Varekova has appeared in the swimsuit edition of Sports Illustrated a total of eight times: 1999-2002 and 2004-2007. She appeared on the cover in 2004. In addition to SI, Veronika was regularly featured in Victoria's Secret but decided not to renew her contract in 2004. She became the face of NIVEA at that time. Other contracts include Guess?, Chanel and Pantene. She was a cover girl for Marie Claire, Harpers & Queen and Cosmopolitan. Her most recent contract (2003 - 2007) has been with Newport News.