Could harness racing have a tie to this year's Miss Universe? A junior driver and part-time bartender is one of 20 finalists for this year's Miss Universe New Zealand.
Hannah McCabe, who achieved her junior driver's license in New Zealand in 2014, has been riding horses since she was three years old and started showing horses at the age of five. She's a self-confessed adrenaline junkie but she wasn't prepared for the feeling that comes with being one of the few remaining entrants vying for the Miss Universe title.
This process is "more than a beauty pageant" according to McCabe, who is using this platform to raise money and awareness for Variety New Zealand, an organization that funds sick and needy children throughout the country.
All 20 finalists now advance to the televised elimination on September 3 to determine who represents New Zealand at the global Miss Universe contest. Part of the criteria for the deciding televised event will be how much local support has been evident for each contestant and how much money each has raised for charity.
An entrant last year that didn't make the top 20 cut, McCabe is fully aware of the comments -- both positive and negative -- the contest will attract.
"You will always get people that have an opinion about you," McCabe told the Malborough Express. "I have to make sure that doesn't get me down."