The delegates who have represented South Africa at international pageants have performed and proved their worth by winning either titles or hearts of the people. With immense confidence and determination, the diva work hard in order to win the title of their country but sometimes their hard work isn’t enough and they don’t qualify for the international pageants. The beauty queens who want to represent and win for their country don’t give up but work twice as harder to win the title.
We’ve selected five such queens from South Africa who were unsuccessful in their first attempt but win the title or high placement at their respective competition in their second or third attempt to make the people of South Africa proud. Let’s look at these hard working and talented Miss South Africa queens:
Amy Kleinhans-Curd represented South Africa at Miss World 1992 on 12th December 1992 at the Sun City Entertainment Center in Sun City, South Africa. She was placed as the fourth runner-up at the end of the event finale. Prior to Miss World Africa 1992, Amy had participated in Miss South Africa 1991 and was placed as the first runner-up at the end of the event finale. She was the first non-white winner in the history of South Africa when she won Miss South Africa 1992 title. During her stint at Miss World 1992, the pageant participants paraded with the flag of their country. Amy refused to walk with the flag of then apartheid South Africa. She chose instead to walk with a white flag, symbolising peace. After the event she received a phone call from Nelson Mandela thanking her for making that decision. The dress she wore while participating in the pageant, a white and gold Stefania Morland design with elaborate ostrich feather details, is on exhibition at the CP Nel Museum in Oudtshoorn. Amy Kleinhans is married to New Zealand businessman Leighton Curd, and is the mother of four children. During one of her interviews, Amy mentioned, she was "both exceptionally confident and exceptionally nervous," and was proud of her achievement. Over the years she has remained grounded and nourished by her community, charged by her entrepreneurial spirit, and inspired by her altruistic desire to help others.
Tansey Coetzee represented South Africa at Miss Universe 2008 on 14th July 2008 at the Crown Convention Center in Nha Trang, Vietnam where she was placed at top 15 at the end of the event finale. She later represented South Africa at Miss World 2008 on 13th December 2008 at the Sandton Convention Centre in Johannesburg, South Africa. She was placed at top 5 at the end of the event finale. Her role model is Oprah Winfrey. “She’s an inspiration to all, I admire her bravery to beat all the odds and to do great things for herself and others.” She is a spokesperson for Endometriosis which is a disorder than can affect menstruation which affects an estimated 200 million women worldwide, according to research collected by the Endometriosis Foundation of America. Even at that young age, Tansey felt something was wrong. “When I was a teenager, we were told I was anaemic. We just assumed that was why I suffered so much every month.” It was only when she and her husband, Kolapo, tried and failed to have a baby that they realised something more serious was wrong. After 15 years of living with chronic pain, Tansey was diagnosed with stage four endometriosis by her gynaecologist, Dr Andre van der Westhuizen at Mediclinic Morningside. Tansey says her happiness is derived from knowing that somehow, she will make another person happy, whether by a simple greeting, a gift, or just a smile.
Marilyn Ramos represented South Africa at Miss Universe 2013 on 9th November 2013 at the Crocus City Hall, Krasnogorsk, a suburb of Moscow, Russia. She was not placed during the competition but was appreciated by the judges for her performance. Prior to winning Miss South Africa 2012, Marilyn had participated at Miss South Africa twice but she wasn’t able to make it to the cut of the finalists but she never gave and in 2012, she was crowned as the winner. She held onto the crown for 16 months, the longest in the Miss South Africa history. Marilyn’s reign wasn’t easy because she was known to be the worst Miss South Africa queen to which she responded, “First and foremost, I want to emphasize that I absolutely loved my year as Miss South Africa. It was an honour and privilege to serve as my country’s ambassador on so many levels. I executed my duties and responsibilities as Miss SA with integrity and to the best of my abilities, and with the resources I was given. So, when a well-known South African magazine published some derogatory comments recently, I felt it to be an ill-informed and personal attack on me as a person. It shocked and saddened me, and with the encouragement of those people close to me, I decided it was time to share my side of the story. The reason I was almost never seen in the media and literally ‘invisible’ is plain and simple: There was no PR in place for Miss SA 2012. The events, charities, and other initiatives I had done went unseen to the public. No one was sending out Press Releases of my doings, creating the warped perception that I wasn’t fulfilling my duties as Miss SA. A PR team was only put in place when the Miss SA 2014 search started, and clearly focused on the 2014 pageant. The events I attended were a combination of what the Miss SA Offices arranged and invitations I received in my own personal capacity. But despite all this I tirelessly focused all my energy on the various charities I was responsible for.” The diva had to clarify everything about her not being seen in public but she didn’t refuse or gave up the crown duties and kept working tirelessly until she crowned her successor.
Rolene Strauss represented South Africa at Miss World 2014 on 14th December 2014 at the ExCeL London in London, United Kingdom. She was crowned as the winner at the end of the event finale and this was the second time that South Africa has won the title outright and the third time, they have held the title. Prior to winning Miss World 2014, Rolene went onto participate at Miss South Africa 2011 where she was placed at top 5 and then she won Miss South Africa 2014. Aftre fulfilling her crown duties, Rolene went back to study and completed her medical degree. She found love in a businessman D’Niel Strauss who coincidentally share the last name with her and the two got married in 2016 and welcomed their son in 2017. Throughout her journey from being Miss South Africa to Miss World, former Miss South Africa Melinda Bam to whom Rolene lost in Miss South Africa 2011 had constantly supported and motivated her. She was present at Miss World 2014 ceremony and seated next to Strauss’ parents to see her win. Rolene is now known as the Transformational Self-Confidence Coach. The coaching model she uses, questions she asks, the way she listens and challenges she gives are bound to bring about transformation and self-confidence in the lives of women who never feel enough at work or at home. The diva is on a quest to help women rediscover self-confidence in their personal- and professional lives. Her keynotes and seminars address the difficulties most women face daily on a practical and relatable level. In 2017, Rolene released a one of its kind Spoken Word Album called “Secrets to My Growth” where she shares practical tips and secrets to a more productive, purpose driven and joyful life. Rolene launched her daily devotional “Reflections from the Heart” on the 1st of October 2019 in Afrikaans and English.
Zozibini Tunzi represented South Africa at Miss Universe 2019 on 8th December 2019 at Tyler Perry Studios in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. This is South Africa's third win after their recent victory in 2017. This edition also saw the crowning of the first black woman winner since Leila Lopes was crowned in 2011. Prior to Miss South Africa 2019, Zozi had participated in Miss South Africa 2017 where she was placed at top 26 but was not selected as one of the twelve finalists. After returning to pageantry for Miss South Africa 2019, Zozi proved that anything is possible if one wants it. During her stint at Miss Universe 2019, the top three were each asked the same question: "What is the most important thing we should teach young girls today?" To which Tunzi replied: “I think the most important thing we should be teaching young girls today is leadership. It's something that has been lacking in young girls and women for a very long time, not because we don't want to but because of what society has labelled women to be. I think we are the most powerful beings in the world and that we should be given every opportunity and that is what we should be teaching these young girls, to take up space, nothing is as important as taking up space in society and cementing yourself, thank you.” Zozibini is a passionate activist and engaged in the fight against gender-based violence. She has devoted her social media campaign to changing the narrative around gender stereotypes. She is a proud advocate for natural beauty and encourages women to love themselves the way they are.
