Melissa Bottema was crowned Miss Grand Netherlands 2022 at the finale of the national pageant held at De Patio, Claus Event Centre, Bosweg 19, Hoofddorp in June this year. Since then, Melissa has been preparing to represent her country at Miss Grand International 2023.
Melissa Bottema is 23 years of age and stands 176 cm tall. She is a model, social worker, and gymnastics coach. She recently completed a minor in Social Psychiatry and is currently studying Social Science.
Melissa Bottema has always passionately advocated about mental health and bullying. Bottema also shared her personal bullying story, initiated a campaign called #Ibelieveinyou to encourage people to open up about their mental health.
She also conducted interviews with various mental health platforms to expand her knowledge, and is now focused on creating a platform where individuals can share their personal bullying stories to raise awareness.
Melissa Bottema started gymnastics at a really young age which taught her the significance of discipline and determination in pursuing one's goals. The sport taught her that no matter how many times you fall, getting up and persisting is essential.
On winning the national title, Melissa took to her official social media as she wrote, “The past two weeks have been really busy, and I feel it’s time for an appreciation post dedicated to the love and support I've been getting from people all over the world. Even though I have been less active, you all keep supporting me. I've gained supporters from around the world, beautiful people from Thailand, Cambodia, Philippines, Indonesia, Colombia, Brazil, all the amazing fan pages and EVERYONE ELSE.”
“Thank you from the bottom of my heart, it truly means the world to me. From now on, I will be doing more lives on instagram to get the chance to connect with you guys. If you have the time, feel free to join. I can't wait to finally meet you all and hopefully see you soon. Lots of love”, she added.
Miss Grand International 2023, the 11th edition of Miss Grand International, is scheduled to be held on 25th October 2023 in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam where Miss Grand International 2022 Isabella Menin of Brazil will crown her successor at the end of the event finale.