Rolene, at 22 years of age, vied for the highly coveted Miss World 2014 crown where she represented her country, South Africa. She made her way into pageantry at the age of 15 years, winning the Elite Model Look South Africa Competition in 2007. In 2011, the diva vied for the Miss South Africa 2011 crown finishing under the list of top 5 finalists. The competition revealed Melinda Bam as the winner for the night. Three years after working on her loopholes, Strauss made her comeback, aiming to win the crown of Miss South Africa 2014 which resulted in her victory. She, as Miss South Africa 2014 went on to represent South Africa in Miss World and ended up being the winner of the competition. Strauss traveled to different countries during her reign and in 2018 she was invited to judge Miss World 2018, becoming the first Miss World from the 2010s to do so.