Victoria Silvstedt’s ex-roommate Melania Trump is bringing back some glamor back to Washington. In order for her old friend Melania to “bring the glamour back into the White House,” the former Playboy playmate supported Donald Trump, the recently announced GOP probable nominee, to win the presidency, she tells PEOPLE.
When Silvstedt and Melania Trump were teenage models, they shared an apartment in Paris. Later, in 1997, Silvstedt was selected as Playboy’s Playmate of the Year. Additionally, Silvstedt stated during Thursday’s Delete Blood Cancer DKMS dinner at Cipriani Wall Street, “I’m just hoping that [Melania] ends up living in the White House.
We lived together for almost a year in Paris, about twenty years ago when we both were starting our careers. I came fresh out of Sweden, and she came from Slovenia, and we really bonded, she’s wonderful.”
As for Mrs. Trump’s potential as a first lady, “She’s very respectful, classy,” says Silvstedt. “America isn’t only about America. She’s a foreigner, and that’s what makes America great. She represents that woman.”
“She’s also a very classy dresser. Not that the White House hasn’t always been glamorous, but she’s definitely a style icon. She always looks amazing. I know that designers probably already do want to dress her, but I would imagine they’re all going to want to dress her she’s so beautiful and graceful.”
As a roommate, “she was so cool,” says Silvstedt. “I remember we used to run up and down the stairs because we had eaten too much ice cream. We moved twice together, but our apartment in the Marais was in one of those old buildings with no elevators. So we had to run up and down to burn all the calories. She was always very disciplined.”
When asked if Silvstedt would like to visit the White House if the Trumps moved in? She said, “Who wouldn’t love to, right? I’m not going to say no to that.”
The one thing you might not ever hear or see the Libs saying, is that Melania Trump is a man… because we all know she was a gorgeous female model back in the day 🤗🤗@MELANIATRUMP pic.twitter.com/DjcQNpYDX8
— Jinee (@jineeminee) March 14, 2024
Recalling their good old days, she said, “When you move to Paris, the first thing your agent tells you is, ‘Lose weight, lose weight. Don’t do sports.’” As an athlete, and former competitor on the Swedish ski team, that was an adjustment. “I was always very muscular. It was a tough transition going from the beauty queen [Miss Sweden] with a sporty and healthy look to Paris where they want to starve you. They said, ‘Don’t even take the stairs because it will make your legs big.’ It was quite a culture. When you’re young, you take all of that seriously.”
2. At 16, a photographer’s lens launched her modeling career.
As Melania Knauss, she graced runways in Paris and Milan. But her early work included risqué shoots, some topless, later scrutinized when she entered the political spotlight.
Ambition has its costs. pic.twitter.com/nrJRhQcQDK
— Muse (@xmuse_) April 26, 2025
They frequently ate meals together at home as young models, preparing easy salads like tuna. “Every time we ate something we would say, ‘Now we must work.’ We used to run up and down the stairs to burn it off. We were very determined,” Silvstedt said. “We didn’t care that they told us not to build up muscles because we had to burn the calories.”
“Melania was very high-fashion. She will be a beautiful first lady — that’s for sure. I’m sure a lot of designers want to dress her and will fight to dress her,” Silvstedt said. “My mom came to visit us once a week in Paris. She told my mom, ‘One day, I will be famous like Sophia Loren.’ Melania’s style icon was always Sophia Loren. That was the idol she had in her life — the look, the beauty, her mystery,” Silvstedt said.
