Model on the ’empowering’ moment she breastfed walking down runway

She became a viral sensation last month.

The model who walked the catwalk as she breastfed her baby has denied that the moment was faked - as she said she wanted the moment to empower other mums. Mara Martin strolled down the 2018 Sports Illustrated Swimsuit show in Miami, Florida last month as she was nursing her baby daughter, Aria. And she insisted on Good Morning Britain this week that the moment was organic - and she is very glad she did it, as it started a conversation about breastfeeding. https://www.instagram.com/p/BlqB2BglBnA/?taken-by=_maramartin_ Speaking to Good Morning Britain this week, she said:

"I was asked if I wanted to walk down the runway with her as like a mummy and me look. "I was getting ready for the show, the show kept getting pushed back and I kept feeding her. "It was normal because I'd been doing it throughout the casting. "Then the organiser said, 'if you want to walk the runway with her, that's no problem.'"

Jeremy Kyle, who was serving as a stand-in host on the show, praised her for "normalising breastfeeding" with the move - but admitted that some people were cynical about it. https://www.instagram.com/p/BmjhiJ-l2ew/?taken-by=_maramartin_ He added:

"The cynics have said the timing was impeccable, that the swimsuit was missing a shoulder, that the timing was perfect and that it was planned."

Mara was adamant that the moment was "organic" - and that it was actually really empowering. She said:

"Of course, everyone had the right to their own opinion. Some people don't agree with breastfeeding in public, others think it was a gimmick. At the end of the day, I know what happened. "The bathing suit was a full bathing suit, I just happened to pull it down. "I was just a regular mum just chasing a dream. I was five months post-partum, I was nourishing a baby, it was a really empowering momement."