PARIS, Mar 7, 2004/ FW/ --- Walking in at the Collette Dinigan show today, I ran into Jay Alexander, catwalk diva and trainer of models on how to walk on the runway. With the last episode of ‘America’s Next Top Model’ second season scheduled to air tomorrow, I could not help but ask him a few questions.

“I have not seen any of the episodes,” Jay Alexander said animatedly. “ After the last day of filming, I had to rush here to Paris and then London, home in New York and then back here to Paris.”

The great news is that ANTM has been signed for two more seasons.

“They called me up at 2AM Paris time to tell me,” Jay said with sleepy eyes.

Like most of the fashion flock, Jay is getting no more than 4 hours of sleep during the season. In between watching the shows, attending the parties and of course ‘working’ such as writing at the end of the day, there are not enough hours in a day.

“It’s hectic, hectic, hectic, with a capital H,” Jay commented when asked how the Paris season has been treating him. “And there is no rest for the weary either. We start shooting in April or May, so there is really no break for me.”

Standing over six feet tall with a thin frame, Jay Alexander is the perfect trainer for runway walking to fashion models.

The U.S. TV audience had their first taste of Jay Alexander’s catwalk prowess during the first season of ANTM. Wearing high heels, short shorts and a white shirt, Jay captured the hearts of the TV viewers with his runway walk.

But this is not the first time that he has done that on the small screen. In London, he did the TV show, “Model Behavior” which has a similar plot for ANTM.

When asked if he can give us an inkling on who will win, he immediately said he’s not supposed to tell.

“But I have favorites,” he said. “Last season, Elise was my favorite among the contestants. This season, Shandi and Mercedes stand out among the other contestants.”

The discussion turned into the current crop of models and who will be big.

With Giselle retired, there is no “Queen of the Runway” in a manner of speaking.

“There is Tiu, and Karolina Kurkova, who dominate the shows nowadays,” Jay Alexander commented. “And then there is also Gerren Taylor who is becoming a favorite of the fashion houses.”

“But truly, at this point in time, I don’t see any candidates to replace Giselle because in the end it is about staying power and stamina. Next season, the new queen of the runway might be identified. But not this time yet.”

We could have chatted longer, but the Torrente show was about to start so we had to run and promised to get in touch.