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‘Proud to wear my abaya’: UAE’s first Miss Universe shares most emotional moments at the pageant

The 27-year-old had to be away from her six-month-old twins and two-year-old son for three weeks to represent the UAE

Published: Thu 21 Nov 2024, 11:43 AM

Updated: Thu 21 Nov 2024, 5:33 PM

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When Emilia Dobreva was crowned Miss Universe UAE in October in a private closed-door audition, her initial euphoria turned into worry. The 27-year-old had to take the tough decision to leave behind her six-month-old twins and two-year-old son to travel to Mexico for three weeks and represent the UAE at the international pageant. But it was her biggest dream — a break she had waited more than 20 years for.

“It was the toughest decision for me,” she said in an exclusive interview with Khaleej Times after a homecoming dinner at a restaurant in Downtown Dubai on Wednesday.

“This is something I have wanted for a very long time, and I was on the cusp of making it a reality. However, leaving my children behind was extremely hard. I am very very lucky to have the support of my husband, my mother and my grandmother who took care of my babies while I was away.”

For three weeks, the ballet teacher pulled off 10-to-12-hour days in Mexico representing the UAE for the very first time at the Miss Universe pageant.

“We had to wake up at 4am every day,” she said. “Breakfast was served at 6.30am and it was compulsory to have it. There would be media all around, so our clothes and makeup had to be on point at that time of the day.”

Throughout the day, the contestants were trained and prepped on how to carry themselves and how to address a stage, among other things. “It was rigorous, hard work, but I learnt so much during my three weeks there,” she said. “Those are lessons I will always carry with me.”

The hardest thing was finding time to sleep, she said. “When it was night in Mexico, it was morning in Dubai,” she said. “I would be on video calls with my children most of the night. My twins were too young to understand but my son missed me a lot. I have a special suction on my phone which I used to stick to the mirror while I did my makeup so that I could keep in touch with my family.”

The suction on Emilia's phone

The suction on Emilia's phone

A dream two decades in the making

It was in 2003, at the age six, when Emilia first participated in a pageant. “It was called Little Miss Universe, and it was a talent-based pageant,” she recalled. “I was really young, but I enjoyed every moment of it. I loved the glitz, the glamour, and the dressing up.”

A trained ballet dancer, she spent several years performing stage shows after that. “I enjoyed being on the stage and having the spotlight on me,” she said. “But inside me, there was always that dream of participating in the real Miss Universe pageant. I wanted to represent the UAE at the pageant but at the time, it was not even a remote possibility.”

Even though she is originally from Kosovo, Emilia has known no home other than the UAE with three generations of her family living here. Emilia grew up in the suburbs of Sharjah with mostly Emirati friends.

“I was an only child, and my Emirati neighbours were the only friends I knew,” she said. “I wanted to be included in their games, so I learnt Khaleeji Arabic pretty quickly.”

In 2021, Emilia got the news that she had been waiting 18 years for: The UAE would have a representation at the Miss Universe competition. “At the time, the rules were different, and you had to be unmarried to compete in the pageant,” she said. “So, I held off getting married and worked hard for it. At the pageant I was in the top three and was thrilled.”

However, fate had different plans as the UAE cancelled its representation that year due to technical reasons. “I was shattered,” she said. “I told myself that it was time to bury my dream and focus on my family. I got married within months and decided to be a traditional wife to focus on the family. I also started my ballet school where I teach children.”

But in 2024, Emilia got the invite to participate in the Miss Universe UAE competition. By this time, things had changed a lot. The pageant, which used to allow only unmarried models between the ages of 18 and 28 to participate, removed all its restrictions related to age, height, weight, and marital status in 2023.

“My babies were four months old at the time and when I went into the pageant, the only thing I wanted was to be around adults and talk about normal adult things,” she chuckled. “For the previous couple of months, I had only been talking and thinking about diapers, bottles, formula and spit up clothes. I just wanted to enjoy the experience. I didn’t even think about winning.”

Her 21-year dream was finally realised when she was crowned Miss Universe. “That moment was everything,” she said. “I sometimes pinch myself to see if it was all true. I am really living my dream now. I want to tell all women, never give up on your dreams. I am proof for that. If you have a dream, keep the flame of it alive.”

Everyone deserved a crown

According to Emilia, the biggest takeaway from the competition was the remarkable women she met there.

“Every woman there deserved a crown,” she said. “There were so many accomplished women that I looked up to and aspired to be like. Miss Spain was a refugee who grew up in a refugee camp. Miss USA was a remarkable lady who was a pilot in the US military. She was really impressive. Miss Somalia was a refugee in Canada and had become a runner-up in the Canadian beauty pageant. She was invited to represent her home country of Somalia, and she became the first ever hijabi contestant in the history of Miss Universe. And Miss Denmark also had a hard life. Winning the pageant will change her life.”

She said she became friends with many of the women there and invited them to come stay with her in Dubai. “My roommate was Miss Suriname, Pooja,” she said. “We became almost like sisters. She is coming to Dubai at the end of this month to visit me. I am also very close with two other contestants who live in Dubai.”

She said she had a secret weapon which she used to bond with her fellow contestants. “Most of the food in Mexico was salads,” she said. “I had taken a cabin bag full of the viral Dubai chocolate. Between rehearsals, the girls used to come to me, and we would share the chocolate. It was great for a boost of energy and to further strengthen our bonds.”

When asked about her regular exercise regime, she said she combined cardio exercises with strength. “I carry my twins in both arms and run after my toddler,” she laughed. “That is my strength and cardio exercise combined. As a mom of young kids, that is the only exercise I have time for. Of course, whenever I can, I do my stretching and the other exercises that I need to maintain my flexibility as a ballet teacher.”

She said some of her most memorable moments in the competition was walking the ramp wearing her abaya and seeing people hold up the UAE flag in the audience. “It was very emotional for me,” she said. “I was very proud to wear my abaya that showed off the UAE culture. But I was very far from home and my family. So, when I saw people holding up the UAE flag in the crowd, I had tears in my eyes. I am grateful for this opportunity to represent the country that has given me everything.”

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