THE name Noam Toor may not ring a bell in this part of the world.

But this 26-year-old hunk has already set Israeli pulses racing.

He shot to fame in 2007 as one of the finalists on Survivor 10: The Caribbean, Israel's version of the popular US reality television programme.

And last year, he was one of Israeli magazine Pnai Plus' Top 20 eligible bachelors in its annual list.

Toor was in town last Friday, along with Israeli supermodel and fellow spokesman Bar Refaeli, to celebrate fashion chain Fox's fifth anniversary and to launch the rebranding of the Fox logo. Both he and Refaeli are the brand's ambassadors.

Toor, who helps out occasionally in his family's bee-keeping business, said he credits his fame in his home country to his Survivor stint, even though he was booted out in the final tribal council, all by a narrow loss.

He joked: 'I wasn't the winner but I became the most popular contestant. Being on Survivor 10 changed my life - I became famous.'

So why are women going gaga over him?

Perhaps it's those dirty blond curls and scruffy tanned appearance?

Or maybe it's that nonchalant surfer-dude attitude that has captured hearts?

He said, with a shrug: 'I don't know. I actually find it funny.'

Despite being one of the most popular personalities in Israel, Toor, who is currently single, revealed he is 'uncomfortable' with the attention he receives from 'warm Israeli women who like to hug me'.

What this reluctant heart-throb really wants to do is to sail around the world in a yacht by himself.

This is also one of the reasons why Thor joined Survivor 10 because 'it was a good chance to equip myself with and practise survival skills'.

Of the 52 days spent filming the series in Los Haitises National Park in the Dominican Republic, Toor was alone on an isolated island for a good 32 days, during which he 'sang, danced, swam and dived a lot'.

In spite of the rough circumstances, Toor - who currently lives in a beach-front property and enjoys water sports like kite-surfing - had an advantage in the game because he grew up surrounded by nature.

He found his Survivor experience 'fun', living without the conveniences of modern life like electricity, the Internet and television, but also felt like he was in jail.

'It was good being by myself but it was also hard. I missed my family, friends and food,' he said.

This article was first published in The New Paper.