Sportswoman Brittany ‘McKey’ Sullivan makes it across the runway with flying colours.
She came into the competition a tomboy: a mixed martial arts exponent (yes, wrestling) who trained daily with her cagefighter boyfriend. She hated being called “girly” and saw it as the ultimate insult.
Though Brittany “McKey” Sullivan had the appearance of a star – she is tall, good looking and super slim – it was obvious from the start of the 11th cycle of America’s Next Top Model that she was not your stereotypical model and she’d be more comfortable on a soccer field than on a fashion runway; more adept at lifting 5kg barbells than striking poses in front of a camera.
Brittany ‘McKey’ Sullivan came into the competition an athlete and left a top model. But McKey was resolute and extremely competitive and slowly but surely she knocked out her competition to emerge as America’s Next Top Model. And ironically, what helped her stay the course of the competition was her early training in the ring and on the field.
“I think it was my drive. When I got to the house, I came in as an athlete so it made me seem like a tomboy. I wasn’t concerned with that image because that is who I am. With the mindset of an athlete, I was able to focus on every task at hand.
"So many girls have beautiful looks but to excel in this competition, you have to have more than that. What did it for me was that I took criticism and advice and turned it into something great. I am a people pleaser and I am my harshest critic ... nothing is good enough for me and I am always pushing myself to do more and to do better. I think the judges were very impressed with that quality,” she said.
Apart from athletic training, McKey attributes her drive to her father, who being blind, deaf and mute, had to overcome unimaginable odds in his life.
Naturally, McKey is thrilled to have won the competition.
“It feels awesome!” she said in a telephone interview from the United States recently. “Winning was such a rush. Right before the announcement, I remember standing there, just overcome with so many emotions. Once they called my name, everything just went blank and it took a while for it to hit me. It was the materialisation of everything I had been working for all my life in that one moment. It’s one of the best feelings I’ve ever had."
McKey beat peppy Samantha Potter in the final runway show in Amsterdam in to win the competition.
McKey’s introduction to modelling was by default, actually. Her dream was to play soccer but due to a bad injury, she had to look for something else to do.
"I heard of a modelling competition and thought. ‘I can do that. Looking pretty and walking around in heels isn’t that hard’. I entered and I did really well, winning the regional competition. I signed with Elite Chicago and went from there,” said McKey in a recent interview with topmodelgossip.com.
Fast forward to the present. Currently a college student, McKey hopes to someday go to medical or law school. For the moment though, she is revelling in her win, overwhelmed by the opportunities that are coming her way.
"It’s been crazy busy (since winning). I’m flying all over the place doing interviews. It’s been nuts because I’ve gotten to do so much, meet so many people and do things I wouldn’t have been able to otherwise. I also have to make a lot of sacrifices in my personal life, but it’s so worth it,” she said.
Modelling is not rocket science. But, says McKey, it’s not easy. A photo shoot, for example, can be extremely exacting.
"The hardest part is trying to make every part of your body work together and show emotions through the body. Many times your face may look amazing, but then your ankle will be in an awkward position. It’s about trying to make everything work together.
“You also need to be able to portray what is inside through your eyes, fingers, and every part of your body. It’s not something a photographer can help you with. You have to breathe life into (your poses) to produce the perfect photo,” she shared.
Also difficult, she admitted, was living in a houseful of models.
“As far as the competition was concerned, I was there to compete and I was ready for all the other girls to be competitive because we’re all fighting for the same thing. It was more the non-competitive moments in the competition that I had issues with ... like living with a whole bunch of girls.
“Also, it is impossible to show everyone’s full personality on the show, but the person (you saw on TV) was definitely me ... it was a very small portion of me, especially because I didn’t have a lot of screen time. For example, in one episode I was yelling at Elina. It was a bit much, but it still came out of my mouth. So even if my actions were taken out of context, I would say that it’s a part of me,” she said frankly.
Will she stick to the name McKey? (Though she came into the competition as Brittany, McKey was asked by the show’s host and creator Tyra Banks to go by McKey as there was another Brittany in the competition.)
"I was very excited about changing my name. I feel like it added a lot more pop.
"In terms of helping me stand out, I don’t think it made that much of a difference since there were only 14 of us. But I think it will be very helpful when I go out to pursue my modelling (career). If agents are seeing thousands of girls, I think they would definitely remember a name like ‘McKey’.
She may however change her hairdo, even though she says she had no problems with the “make over” she received on the show.
“When I came into the competition, I had extensions and dreadlocks which looked ridiculous. It was a painful process to get them out, but I love the short hair. I liked the colour straight away. I’m getting a little sick of it now,” she laughed. “All in all, I think it looks really cool, like Demi Moore in Ghost.”
The 11th cycle of the popular series was praised by gay rights groups in America as it included a transgendered contestant – former receptionist Isis.
Though she did not make it to the finals, McKey reckons Isis gained a lot from the competition.
"I saw her as one of the girls and an equal contestant. We were roommates and as I got to know her better, I saw how strong a person she is. She’s been through a lot of hard times but she’s grown from it and has made herself a better person. I just love her,” she said.
The only regret McKey had on the show was that she did not get to know her fellow competitors better.
"I try not to have too many regrets. But if I had to think of one, it would be that because of how competitive I was ... always thinking of winning ... I missed out on what was going on around me. I would’ve liked to know some of the girls better. But that didn’t happen because I was competing against them. Had it been a vacation or something, it would’ve been completely different and I would’ve gotten more out of it in a social sense.
"At the end of the day, it was a competition so ultimately, I am fine with letting that get in the way,” she surmised.
And what did she think of Banks?
"Tyra is a one-of-a-kind person. She’s a very passionate person who cares about a lot of things and never does anything half-heartedly. I think one of her major goals is to affect the way girls view themselves. She doesn’t want them to be influenced by images of celebrities in pop culture and preaches the message that beauty comes in many different packages.
"She inspires young women to be different and to foster their own personalities.”
