Courtland teen Aalanna Ramona Rusnak was challenged by the unexpected at the 2023 Miss Teen Mundial international pageant in Curacao.
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The Norfolk County teen who won Miss Teenage Canada in August 2022 finished in the Top 10 of the week-long world pageant that concluded Sept. 30.
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“It was definitely a positive experience and I am so happy that I got to be a part of it,” said Rusnak, a graduate of Glendale High School in Tillsonburg, now attending Western University in London. “The people in Curacao were some of the nicest people I’ve ever met. They were so friendly, so welcoming. And all of the delegates were very nice as well.”
The first couple days were spent getting to know the 30-plus delegates and rehearsals were held for the final show.
“It was really nice to meet all of them and experience their different cultures.”
Contestants met government representatives, went on tours, learned about the Caribbean island, its culture and cuisine, its beaches, and met a lot of people.
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On the Wednesday they started with the national costume competition, a new experience for Rusnak at her first international pageant.
“It was a little overwhelming at first. All the delegates had these HUGE extravagant costumes – I was not expecting that. To be honest, I was a little bit intimidated.
“Everyone said international pageants are stressful, but I was not expecting that much stress. Everyone, every country, had team members – at least three people. They had makeup artists, hair stylists, directors… a whole team catering to them at every moment, every single day.”
Aalanna’s team was her mother – and she was very, very proud of her.
Rusnak, also accompanied by her father and brother, said she was happy to represent Canada.
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“It was a beautiful costume. It had maple leaves on it and it was sparkly and iridescent. I did really, really well, but that was definitely a new, intimidating experience for me.”
The interview, Rusnak’s favorite portion of the pageant, followed on the Friday.
“That went really, really well for me. After the final night, almost all of the judges told me my interview was so strong and they were blown away by my performance in that category. That was really special to hear.”
On the final Saturday night, winners were announced in stages.
“It definitely went over very well, I was very proud of myself.”
Rusnak admitted she did not expect to make Top 15 that night, but was thrilled to win ‘Most Photogenic.’ It meant she had already surpassed her goal by winning a special award.
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“Especially because the girls were just so gorgeous, they’re like the most beautiful teens in the word. The host said, ‘1,000 pictures and every one of your pictures is great.’”
When the Top 15 were announced, ‘Canada’ was the first one called.
“It was literally like the biggest weight had been lifted off my shoulders. I was very happy at that point just to say I was in the Top 15 and I had already surpassed my goal.”
The Top 15 contestants did the swimsuit walk, and Rusnak advanced to the Top 10.
“I think I did a fabulous job.”
The Top 10 competed in the evening gown walk, which had an unexpected surprise for Rusnak.
“Backstage, they were putting my gown on and the whole back of the dress ripped. So I kind of freaked out for a second – it was crazy, I couldn’t believe it.”
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She quickly calmed down, carefully positioned her hair over the back of the dress, and “rocked it like the rip never happened,” and all was well.
“I was proud of that – it showed my composure.”
Looking back at the pageant, Rusnak said her main takeaway was learning to deal with stress – and thrive.
“The competition was so tough. It was 30-plus degrees in Curacao, everything was stressful and continually adding to my stress levels, but I feel like I worked really well with it and did the best I could.”
Going forward, the first-year Western student said she plans to continue modeling, something she learned to enjoy during her run from Miss Teenage Ontario Southwest to Miss Teenage Canada to Top 10 at Miss Teen Mundial.
“It’s been such a learning experience and I’ve grown so much, and I know that all of these things that I’ve learned, they can be applied to my future life and career.”
After she completes her studies, Rusnak said she will consider trying an adult pageant.
“I think that would be a very special experience.”
While enjoying her time living in the city, Rusnak said “it’s always nice to come home to the nice quiet forest and farmland and no traffic or city life.”
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