Rose of Tralee Maria Walsh has admitted she is glad she was open about her sexuality.
The American beauty, 27, revealed she was gay after her win in August, and knows it would have been “weird” not to have opened up.
She said: “I’m a transparent person, it would be weird for me not to have my sexuality not come out the way it did.
Open: Maria is glad to have told all | VIPIRELAND.COM
“I’ve been out with my family for about two and a half years and for me it’s a part of my identity – it’s just so ingrained and I don’t even think about it now.”
Meanwhile, Maria has told how she doesn’t mind being positioned as Ireland’s newest role model.
As well as being open about her sexuality, she has also been behind a high-profile campaign for the the Road Safety Authority.
Support: Maria’s family have been entirely behind her | VIPIRELAND.COM
And Maria told the Herald: “I certainly do not mind being held up as an example at all, it’s a positive example that I feel I’m setting.
“And it’s great that people are still talking about it in January even though I was crowned a few months ago.”
