Gigi Hadid showed she’s just as adept at defending herself as she is strutting the fashion week runways.
As the world’s top supermodel was leaving a Milan Fashion Week venue with sister Bella, she was manhandled by former Ukrainian TV reporter Vitalii Sediuk.
In a video first posted on TMZ, the serial celebrity pest grabs Gigi from behind and lifts her off the ground as she was leaving the Max Mara runway show.
Gigi defended herself when a man grabs her after the Max Mara show. pic.twitter.com/IsHEkTkkER
— Hadid News (@HadidNews) September 22, 2016
A quick-thinking Gigi reacted angrily, quickly breaking Sediuk’s grip before screaming, “Let go of me!”, followed by a series of expletives.
Shaken but not deterred, Gigi tried to go after Sediuk who made a hasty exit when his stunt went pear-shaped.
But a bodyguard grabbed her by the arm and helped her in the car: “Go find that guy”, she can be heard pleading before leaving the scene.
In an email to The Associated Press, Sediuk, below, admits that he lifted Gigi off the ground, saying it was a form of protest against the use of celebrity models.
“While I consider Gigi Hadid beautiful, she and her friend Kendall Jenner have nothing to do with high fashion,” Sediuk said in the statement.
“By doing this I encourage fashion industry to put true talents on the runway and Vogue covers instead of well-connected cute girls from Instagram. You can call it a manifest or a protest.”
Sediuk also fired a salvo at the Kardashians, saying he objected to seeing any of the reality TV clan featuring in Vogue.
Kim Kardashian has been a previous object of Sediuk’s uninvited attention when their paths crossed at a fashion week event in Paris two years ago.
Sediuk also previously spent two days in jail after a scrap with Brad Pitt at a film premiere, and more recently he crawled under America Ferrera’s dress at a film launch in Cannes.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BKrTypmjeRU/?taken-by=gigihadid&hl=en
Hours later, Gigi had seemingly shaken off the scare, looking as flawless as ever on the Fendi runway.
But she also took to Twitter to urge her followers to know how to defend themselves in the event of an attack.
Boxing is one of Gigi’s favourite forms of exercise, as previously reported on The Carousel.
