Two Wandsworth women have seen off 5,500 bottoms to reach the final of a coveted rear of the year' competition.

Yolande Elliott, 22, and Sophie Palmer, 26, who both live in Putney, won through to the final 10 of the Show Me Your Sloggi's World's Best Bum 2007 contest.

Miss Elliott, who works for a youth enterprise centre in the borough, said: "I'm totally shocked that I got to the final, it was my mum who nominated me, which may be quite surprising but she's very liberal.

"I only decided to enter for a bit a fun but the driving force is because I'm trying to set up a swimwear label and the main prize of 10,000 Euros would come in very handy."

She added: "I think the secret is mainly to do with genes - plus I did a lot of dance classes when I was younger.

"My boyfriend's been very supportive and it was his friends who did a lot of the voting online."

Miss Palmer, a magazine picture editor, who entered the competition at the V festival, said most entrants had asked to keep their clothes on for the pictures, but she was keen to bare her backside for the challenge. She said a lot of people had struck sexy poses for their pictures, but she hoped her comedy stance, complete with a sunburnt bum had secured her extra votes.

Public voting has now closed and the pair will go cheek-to-cheek in this week's final, to be held in front of a panel of judges at a Piccadilly nightclub along with 10 male finalists.

The two winners, one man and one woman, will then compete with finalists from 28 other countries to be crowned the World's Best Bum.

The winners will be flown to Munich at the end of October for an international showdown.

The final winners will have their behinds insured, star in a global advertising sloggi campaign and pocket a 10,000 Euro prize each.