[GALLERY + VIDEO]: Beauty contest unleashes local talent

Miss Icon beauty pageant was hosted at Alberton Civic Centre on December 14.

The beauty pageant, hosted by Getrude Tseki, a Mrs South Africa semi-finalist for 2017, was a fund-raising event toward the Forte Hair and Beauty Institute.

The institute is a Vosloorus-based institution which offers short courses on hair and beauty for the underprivileged.

It mostly caters for learners with mild intellectual disabilities and school drop-outs.

Miss Icon is an initiative that creates a platform for young women who aspire to enter high profile pageants and the modelling industry.

The 10 contestants which participated were judged by an experienced panel.

Contestants were given a chance to model in swimwear and evening wear.

Those who made it to the top were crowned in four different categories.

These included Miss Icon Teen Social Media, Miss Icon Teen 2019, as well as the first and second princesses.

Tseki said: “For the contestants to get to where they are, they had to go on a journey. We initially had 23 contestants, but most of them were eliminated as they had to be voted for online to make it to the top 10. We teach them responsibility and prepare them for the working environment.”

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