28-year old Zoiey Smale was supposed to complete in Miss United Continents in Ecuador next month, but instead decided to hand over her Miss UK title because the national director of the pageant reportedly told her that the people running the pageant in Ecuador wanted her to lose weight.

“She said to me ‘They want you to go on a diet plan and they want you to lose as much weight as possible for the finals,’” Zoiey told the Daily Mail. “I was like, ‘pardon?’ It was one of those things, in the 21st century you don’t actually expect people to be that blunt.”

On August 21, Zoiey wrote on Facebook that she was “branded fat because she is a size 10.”

“When I made the decision to hand over my crown, I never thought I would have the backing of thousands of people. I woke up to so many of you contacting me with your stories and kind words of support. I have tried to personally thank all of you but there aren’t enough hours in the day,” she said.