Ever since South African beauty Rolene Strauss won the Miss World 2014 beauty pageant in London on December 14, she has been the apple of everyone’s eye.
When she arrived at the OR Tambo International Airport, crowds in huge numbers had gathered to welcome her on this stupendous success. Waving to the massive crowd, she said – “Please come on this journey with me. I will be walking in front but I ask you, be behind me. Many might think since I’m Miss World, I have made it — but it’s a journey.”
Strauss, who hails from Volksrust in Mpumalanga and is a Free State University medical student, was all praise for the crowd as well as all the people that had supported her throughout her journey. Finding it hard to control her emotions, she said that she is short on words to express how she is feeling.
She also stressed on the fact that in order to achieve something, it isn’t always necessary to have an idol, or someone you want to emulate in order to consider yourself successful. She encouraged all the young girls and women to establish an identity of their own and don’t try to be someone.
“You don’t have to fit into a certain box to be someone. Don’t try to be someone else. Create your own box.” she said.
Strauss sounded promising when she said that during her tenure as Miss World, she would go all out in changing the perception that the world holds about South Africa and make them aware of its beauty.
Also present at the occasion was Sports minister Fikile Mbalula, who was all smiles and hopeful that Strauss will make the nation proud. He said – “Nelson Mandela is smiling on us for his idea of a united nation, a rainbow is alive,”
