Yeray Antonio Betancort Paz has achieved his most longed-for dream: to reach the final of the Mister Spain beauty contest. The most striking thing is that this 24-year-old, born in Tías, will represent the province of Ávila in the final. The waiter, who is preparing for the Military Police entrance exams within the Air Force, has tried up to four times to have the opportunity to be chosen among the most beautiful in Spain: twice presenting himself for his island, becoming Mister Lanzarote in 2007, and twice doing so in the Las Palmas contest, without achieving his goal.
Far from being discouraged, the Lanzarote native decided to make one last attempt this year and, as the Castilian saying goes: "There's no fifth bad one." Yeray is finally among the finalists for Mister Spain in the 2009 edition.
-Yeray, how did you end up representing Ávila being from Lanzarote?
-Since I didn't have luck before, I wanted to try again, this time taking advantage of the vacancies for the 12 provinces that do not have a delegation from the Mister contest. When no one organizes or sponsors the event, you can present yourself as a freelancer. I was chosen Mister Ávila and they called me from Madrid for the final.
-Was it a coincidence or did you choose this province for something specific?
-It wasn't for anything specific. It was the last option I had, the last casting I could apply to and I did it together with another boy from Lanzarote, the current Mister Lanzarote, and I was lucky enough to be chosen.
-So, you burned the last cartridge to fulfill your dream, right?
-Yes, never better said, it was the last opportunity I had and, curiously, the one that has turned out best for me. I've been very lucky.
-How many times have you tried in total?
-I presented myself twice in Lanzarote, I was Mister in 2007 and then I presented myself another two times in Las Palmas as well. And in view of the fact that I had no luck through those channels, I took advantage of this last cartridge.
-What is the next step now?
-Now we are going to see what happens in the Mister Spain contest and then we will see.
-Do you already know when it will be held?
-The only thing I know at the moment is that it will be in the month of October in Toledo, but nothing else. We do not know the exact dates and we are waiting for them to call us.
