Victoria Renard remembers the day she gave up her Miss Washington Outstanding Teen crown very well. She remembers having difficulty crowning her successor–not because of emotions, however. It was tough because her sister is two inches taller than her.

That’s right, sisters Victoria and Nicole Renard have the distinction of being the first back-to-back MAOTeen titleholders in history.

“Seeing my sister come out on the stage holding the crown was a feeling unlike any other and honestly I don’t remember much of it,” says Nicole about being crowned Miss Washington Outstanding Teen 2011. “My crowning picture does a good job of summing up how I felt and what I did: gave all the glory to God. There was no way I had just won that by my own talents.”

The feat was especially amazing since, at first, only Victoria had pageant aspirations. Nicole recalls receiving a brochure in the mail for a pageant that interested her sister–and she recalls having no interest in pageants whatsoever.

“The first time she competed I looked over at my mom and said, ‘Never sign me up for this’” says Nicole. “Little did I know, one day she would be passing on one of the most prestigious titles for teens in Washington to me.”

Victoria and Nicole agree that they have been best friends their entire lives, so it only makes sense that Nicole followed Victoria and her interests. Being two years apart, they were involved in many of the same activities–dance, school leadership, volunteering, Young Life, and, eventually, pageantry.

“I can speak for Nicole and I both on the fact that our parents have been absolutely wonderful throughout our pageant journey,” says Victoria. “Thank goodness for my mom’s organizational skills and my dad’s knack at packing our luggage so it all fits into our car! None of this would be possible without them.”

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