Interview with Young European International Ms – Hannah Travers

Photo by Ant Bradshaw

Thank you so much Hannah for letting me interview you ! This is my first interview where I’m interviewing someone else so I’m very excited to learn about Hannah’s pageant journey with YEMI !

Firstly Hannah what made you enter pageants ?

Hannah Tordoff the YEMI -Mrs. Hannah and I worked together and she talked about pageants a lot! They sounded like fun and I am naturally very competitive so when she asked me if I would do Crown & Glory England Heat, it didn’t take me long to sign up. I didn’t really have a clue what I was doing but as soon as I started I was hooked!

Hannah has competed in pageants before with some incredible success.

Her previous titles are: 👸🏻Woman Crown & Glory England 👸🏻Mrs Crown & Glory UK World (which gave her opportunity to compete at Mrs world UK heat)

Including YEMI Hannah has competed a total of 4 times and the next time she will be competing will be the internationals in August!

“Getting ready has been crazy and I can’t wait for everyone to see my national wear… I think it is really different. Can’t believe it’s only a few months away!”

Why did you decide to compete in the YEMI system ?

I chose to compete in YEMI as I like that you get to choose your platform and/or the charity that means something to you. With the motto Aspire to inspire it allows me to promote my platform of wellness and it’s part of my mission to inspire others to look after themselves.

What’s your pageant platform and why did you choose it ?

My pageant platform is a holistic approach to wellness. I chose this as it is something I’m really passionate about because of my own journey. I used to be classed as clinically obese and I was so unfit I would struggle to walk up 14 steps into work. It affected my mental health hugely and I cried everyday in private but told everyone in public I was fine and I loved the way I was. It wasn’t true. I lost weight by making healthier choices and exercising a few times a week. To begin with it was only for 10/15 mins a time as I was so unfit. As the exercise got easier my mental health improved and I became a healthy weight without thinking too much a developing healthy habits. I am now studying nutrition as I want to help other girls achieve what I did without a fad diet.

What’s your dream title ?

My dream title is Young Ms International, so I really hope I bring this back to the UK in August. I would love to represent a system that allows me to promote my platform of choice. I have so many plans that have been put on hold because of lockdown but it is just allowing me to think bigger if I was to win how I could inspire others.

What’s the best piece of advice you can offer to someone ?

The piece of advice I would give is to practice your walks and interview. Don’t just think winning a title is easy. Before YEMI I trained with Caroline and Mark Tooby, I also attended Ruth wades free workshops and a confidence session with Hannah Golding. I also hired a hall with Hannah Tordoff to practice our walks which we filmed and watched back. Practice makes perfect.

What have you been doing in the run up to the International Finals ?

In the run up to internationals, I have been promoting my platform as much as possible, attending events before lockdown happened and making sure all my outfits are sorted. I have also attended groups training with Grace Levy and been practicing my walks regularly.

What do you think makes a good role model ?

Someone who is themselves. I don’t ever pretend to be something, I am not and I don’t try to be a role model. I know I am a kind person, who is not very funny (trust me on that one), I am determined to be the best I can be but accept sometimes I will fail at things and have to get up and try again.

What’s your favourite round in pageants ?

My favourite pageant round is evening wear as I don’t think there are enough occasions in life where it is acceptable to wear an evening gown.

Photo by Charlotte Clemi

Do you get nervous when competing ? And if so how do you deal with those pageant nerves ?

Nerves don’t really hit me until the day or the night before if we are doing a PJ party or event like that. I tend to go quiet and that’s because if I focus on me and what I’m doing it stops me worrying about how much better other people are. I also practice on the stage during rehearsals. Once it’s time to start all my nerves disappear and I just have fun.

Thank you much Hannah for being the first person that I’ve interviewed on my blog, and good luck in the Internationals. Keep me posted with your pageant journey ! Much love Charlotte, Ms Diamond South Yorkshire 2020.