First-ever Miss Russia swaps catwalk for classroom
Published 05 January, 2008, 15:56
Fifteen years ago an unknown teenager from St. Petersburg made history by becoming the first- ever Miss Russia. After a whirlwind of posing and publicity Anna Baichik faded from the spotlight. RT has tracked her down and found that a lot has changed for the former beauty queen.
Anna Baichik may now seem to be like any other wife or mother. She holds a PhD and juggles a demanding working life with looking after 2-year-old Stepan. But this 30-year-old set a historic first, when at the tender age of 16 she became the first ever Miss Russia.
Dreams can’t last forever
She says winning the crown changed her life overnight, throwing her into a world of modelling and travel.
For the first two years she got to visit places she’d only dreamt of, such as Argentina, Miami and Zanzibar. She was even the first Russian woman to climb Mount Kilimanjaro.
At the age of 16 Anna became the first ever Miss Russia
Anna says she loved all the excitement but knew it couldn’t last forever. Anna remembers when that when she was crowned Miss Russia it was totally unexpected for her.
“I enjoyed my life back then, but I got fed up with everyone making my decisions for me and wanted to take control for myself,” she said.
Anna soon got tired of the pressure and competition in the fashion world and sought something more rewarding.
To those who witnessed her time in the limelight this wasn’t a surprise.
“She gave a lot of interviews and often reproached reporters for changing her comments. She decided to study for a degree in journalism, which means the competition had a certain effect on her,” said Marina Kruglova, former vice-president of the Miss Russia pageant.
So she decided to swap the catwalk for the classroom. For seven years Anna has been lecturing in foreign media at St. Petersburg University.
Still performing – now in the classroom
She says teaching is more rewarding than modelling, but has a similar buzz as she still gets to perform in front of an audience, even if it is in a different way. While the days of dressing up for the cameras may be over, it’s obvious the former beauty queen has kept her sense of style.
Anna thinks teaching is more rewarding than modelling
But what do her students think of their lecturer’s glamorous past?
Some of them didn’t know and were surprised she chose to teach. Others point at the harmony she has. They say she has a skill for communicating and passing on her knowledge to others.
It’s for precisely this reason that Anna says she will stay in teaching, leaving her modelling days well and truly in the past.
Fifteen years ago Anna was crowned the most beautiful girl in Russia. Now her life couldn’t be more different, working as a professor at one of Russia’s top universities, proving that a pageant queen can have both brains and beauty.
