Miss Chidinma Adetshina Steps Away from Pageantry
Miss Chidinma Adetshina, the first runner-up of Miss Universe Nigeria, as well as Miss Africa and Miss Oceania, revealed in an interview with BBC Pidgin on Tuesday, November 19th, that she has made the decision to step away from the pageant industry.
The Journey So Far: Surpassing Expectations and Prioritizing Mental Health
The 23-year-old beauty queen shared that she had initially planned mentally to make it into the top 30, but was surprised to exceed her expectations, making it to the top 2.
“I thought I was just going to make the top 30 and I was actually okay with it, I put it in my heart to just make the top 30”- in her words.
She shared how traumatic the journey was and even said she would need to take care of her mental health and speak to a therapist to talk to once she got home; in Nigeria.
Self-Cheerleading Amidst Competition
Chidinma Adetshina explained how she was her own biggest cheerleader during the contest which took place in Mexico alongside 125 contestants from other countries.
“A lot of the countries had so many supporters. When we would walk down everyone would scream their country, but no one was screaming Nigeria. I had to remind myself that I am still worthy and capable”.- she said
Future Plans
Despite her success and record of being the first runner-up ever from Nigeria and West Africa, Miss Universe has revealed her plans to step back from pageants to focus on her education and explore new opportunities in modelling and acting.
“I am putting pageantry to bed, but I’m going to focus on my education. More into runway, more into acting. So many things I would love to touch on and see where my potential can go to”
Besides wanting to explore other endeavours Miss Chidinma Adetshina is also preparing herself to work on various projects in collaboration with the Miss Universe organization.
Although the details are still being finalized, she disclosed that her role would entail traveling to different countries for development-focused initiatives.
