The freshly crowned Miss World Sri Lanka 2021, Sadé Greenwood will represent Sri Lanka at the 70th edition of the Miss World pageant to be held in at the José Miguel Agrelot Coliseum in San Juan, Puerto Rico this December. The COVID-19 pandemic restricted gatherings and as a result, pageant organisers were left with the option of head-hunting a potential beauty to represent Sri Lanka sans the regular selection process. However, ModelShop and the rest of the Siyatha Miss World Sri Lanka team is impressed by her talents and potential and is confident that wwwGreenwood would make Sri Lanka proud.
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the pageant
Sangeetha Weeraratne, one of the directors of ModelShop said that this time due to COVID restrictions they had to head hunt a beauty to represent Sri Lanka at the main pageant. “Miss World is something we know since 2012 and as Model Shop we had the freedom given to us by franchise owners to select a potential candidate. With COVID restrictions we couldn’t organise a pageant but at the same time we didn’t want to bring down the standards. Hence the best thing was to head hunt. I first saw Sadé in a hoarding but she had already sent in an application for auditions. We put a post out at the beginning of the year calling for applications but we decided to select her. So we went through the application and auditioned her for everything and realised that she was a very good candidate to represent Sri Lanka. She is well versed about Sri Lanka and international relations and is proud of her country. She filled all criteria perfectly and thereafter we informed Ceylon Tours, the franchise organisation.”
Having contributed his expertise in communication skills and etiquette training at successive Miss World Sri Lanka pageants, Kumar De Silva is confident about the newly crowned beauty queen. “Sadé has a lot of potential and good material. She’s intelligent, extremely persevering and sharp. I’m very happy to work with her and she has a very good chance at the world stage. She’s reading for a degree in international relations and she knows what she’s talking about. The team is quite confident about her chances of winning.”
Veteran choreographer and fashion designer Senaka De Silva has been part of the team over the past few years, fine tuning every step and every move the finalists take when they walk the ramp. “It was much easier than other years where we take 15 finalists and train all of them. This year because of the pandemic and health restrictions we decided to nominate one girl and train her. But even with one girl it was not easy as she hadn’t been professionally trained before. We had around two weeks but she made it on stage and there’s another one and a half weeks of training to ensure more finesse.”
The Channa Upuli Dance Foundation has been in the forefront in projecting Sri Lankan culture on the global stage. Over the years, veteran dance choreographer Channa Wijewardena along with his daughter Aseka Wijewardena has been part of the Miss World Sri Lanka team bringing in their expertise in the field of traditional dancing. In his comments, Channa Wijewardena said that Sri Lanka has a rich culture and when we go overseas we have something to offer them. “She has rhythm and performing abilities and it was easy to train her to do the dance steps.”
Apart from them, veteran photographer Athula Mahawalage has been extending his expertise and support as the official photography partner over the past few years, while Ramani Fernando Salons and Dhananjaya Bandara have been the hair and beauty partners respectively.
Senaka De Silva
“ It was much easier than other years where we take 15 finalists and train all of them. This year because of the pandemic and health restrictions we decided to nominate one girl and train.”
Sangeetha Weeraratne
“ Miss World is something we know since 2012 and as Model Shop we had the freedom given to us by franchise owners to select a potential candidate. With COVID restrictions we couldn’t organize a pageant but at the same time we didn’t want to bring down the standards.”
Channa Wijewardena
“ She has rhythm and performing abilities and it was easy to train her to do the dance steps.”
Believe in yourself and you can do wonders ”
- Greenwood-
A product of Asian International School, Sadé Greenwood has a passion for singing, reading and poetry. She also has a passion for environmental conservation and she believes this crowning is an opportunity to carry this message forward. Speaking to the Daily Mirror Life the newly crowned beauty queen shared her experiences and what she plans to do at the upcoming pageant.
Excerpts:
Q Tell us about yourself.
I’m studying International Relations at Tokyo International University, Japan. I’m an avid supporter of animal rights and I’m an animal rights activist as well. Ever since I turned 16 I have been working part time for Embark. I have also been volunteering at Pearl Protectors which is an organisation that is involved in raising awareness on marine conservation in Sri Lanka.
Q What brings you into modelling?
I always love to step out of my comfort zone. When the opportunity arose I decided to go for it when I was just 14 and five years later, I’m wearing a crown to represent Sri Lanka on a global stage.
Q Tell us about the experience you had during auditions.
It was about believing in oneself. When you’re going through the process you need to believe in what you’re capable of. I wanted to give it my best. This is my first experience at a pageant and I’m really grateful for this opportunity.
Q What is your ‘Beauty with a Purpose’ project?
The project I have chosen is Pearl Protectors, which is an organisation based in Sri Lanka. It started in 2018 by a group of university students who realised that there was a massive environmental impact due to plastic pollution along the Sri Lankan coastline. Since Sri Lanka is a Trade Route a lot of ships pass through and this means our waters are at risk of having oil spills and other disasters as well. As a result Olive Ridley Turtles and whales would be directly impacted by these events. Hence the objective of this organisation is to raise awareness on conservation and bring likeminded individuals together to mitigate environmental pollution. Therefore I hope to spread this message at the Miss World pageant.
Q How do you feel like to wear a crown and represent a country at an international pageant?
It feels incredible. It’s an amazing feeling when I realise that I’m representing everyone in this country.
Q You will be leaving soon to represent Sri Lanka at the international pageant. How are you prepping for the final event?
I’m training for the National Dance, choreographing, walking and posing. I have an amazing team and they are my backbone. They have helped me to grow and I’m grateful for their support.
Q Future aspirations?
After studying International Relations I want to come back and help children in terms of education. I want to raise awareness on the importance of education especially in rural areas. These children don’t have access to English medium classes. Hence I would like to work with these children and ensure that they have access to quality education.
Q What is your message to those who have a dream to walk the ramp?
Dream big and reach for the stars. Nothing is impossible if you put your mind to it. You just have to have that little bit of belief in yourself and you can do wonders.
Pix by Pradeep Dilrukshana
