Miss Teen Universe Bibyana Marquez overcomes bullying with a smile and crown

Gulf News

US native discusses pageant coming to Dubai and why she’s passionate about teen issues  See more videos at https://gulfnews.com/videos Read more Gulf News stories here: https://bit.ly/2HLJ2km  #MissTeenUniverse #bullying #beautypageants

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00:00Oh yes, for everybody. Any girl could be the next Miss Teen Universe.

00:03So, you know, I would encourage as many people as possible to join.

00:15I am honestly so grateful for this huge blessing in my life.

00:18It has completely changed my life already in such a short time.

00:22And there's already so many things going on, so many projects.

00:26And I have to say I am very grateful and excited.

00:30Well, something not a lot of people know is that I love to design.

00:35I love designing. I love to draw.

00:37And a fun fact about that is that I am actually self-taught.

00:41So, you know, it's something that I really, really do enjoy.

00:44And actually, for every pageant I have done,

00:46I design my own evening gowns and then wear them on the final night.

00:52Actually, when I first started, I had no idea about pageants.

00:55I had no idea about modeling.

00:58Actually, it was a person who really inspired me.

01:01She's the owner of a dress store in McAllen, where I live.

01:05And so she said, you should join my pageant.

01:08And I thought, I've never modeled before.

01:10I have no idea what I'm going to do.

01:12But, you know, I'll just give it my 100% and see what happens.

01:15So then from there, I started.

01:17I joined another one and another one.

01:18And here I am today.

01:22I think what's really common in teens nowadays

01:25and something that's really going on a lot is bullying.

01:28I see this happening all the time in schools and pretty much everywhere.

01:33This is something I actually went through in school.

01:35And, you know, it was a very hard experience for me

01:38because it was something that really did make me insecure at that time.

01:42So then after that, I started doing homeschool.

01:45And, you know, a while later, I joined my first pageant.

01:49I think everything happens for a reason.

01:52And today I look back at it and think,

01:54OK, no, it's OK, because that experience did make me stronger.

01:58It made me who I am today.

01:59And because I started homeschool, I started pageants.

02:02So, you know, I'm grateful for everything.

02:07They were so excited and so grateful.

02:10I think they got just as excited as I did

02:13because, you know, they've been with me this whole journey.

02:15They know when I started, how I started.

02:18And I remember when I first started,

02:19I never thought I could be Miss Teen Universe in just one year.

02:23So that is a big deal for my family and my team, also my team,

02:27my makeup artist, my photographer.

02:29They're all so, so excited.

02:33Definitely always, no matter what, always believe in yourself

02:36because if you don't believe in yourself,

02:39you know, it's things get so, so much harder.

02:42Like when before, when I used to not really believe in myself,

02:46I was very insecure.

02:47I felt like I couldn't accomplish anything.

02:49But today, after my first pageant is where I proved to myself

02:53what I'm capable of doing.

02:55And so definitely always believe in yourself

02:58and no matter what anybody else tells you.

03:04It's been a great experience.

03:05This is actually my first time in Dubai.

03:07I was going to be here in summer,

03:09but, you know, due to the virus, everything got cancelled.

03:12But I am very grateful to be here.

03:14Actually, Josh was telling me the weather is way better

03:16at this time than in summer.

03:19So I think it's pretty great that the dates did move.

03:22And especially being here as Miss Teen Universe

03:25just makes me so happy.

03:29Being Miss Teen Universe is a huge blessing,

03:31but also a huge responsibility

03:33because you're an inspiration to many, many people around the world.

03:38And that is honestly a privilege.

03:41I feel very, very blessed because, you know, as I was growing up,

03:45well, as we are growing up, you always admire somebody.

03:48You always look up to someone.

03:50So it makes me very happy to be that person.

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