Victorious as a pageant queen and athlete
The former Miss Benoni has been a busy, sporty bee.
Benoni resident Victoria Welthagen (23) has been a busy bee since her reign as Miss Benoni 2016.
In 2017, she travelled South Africa to compete in all eight Warrior races in the black-ops division.
The black-ops division includes: 10 to 17kms, 25 to 30 obstacles and six water points.
“It is the most challenging category,” said Welthagen.
In 2018, Welthagen competed in six Warrior races in the Elite category.
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“In this category, we see a combination of both Rookie and Commando obstacles with an addition of endurance obstacles that involve carrying and dragging heavy objects for set distances.”
She did the 5km, which is 15 obstacles and the 10km, which is 20 obstacles, unassisted.
She also competed in the Last Man Standing Crossfit competition in Sun City and placed 33 out of the 80 people who competed.
In 2019, Welthagen competed in the Spartan sprint, 5km and 20 obstacles, she also did the Spartan Trifecta which is one weekend and three days. Welthagen secured first and third place in a total of 40km and over 60 obstacles in Kings Kloof.
Welthagen also competed in the Spartan Stadium Lofters race, securing first place in her category, three Warrior races in Pretoria and at the Riversands, received fifth place at nationals, taking the Rookie Elite.
All of this was done while she went out for Miss Gauteng, which also let Welthagen walk away as the Miss Gauteng runner first princess, opening her own real estate company, Tori Estates, qualifying for Obstacle Course Racing (OCR) World Championships and working with Top Model South Africa.
Welthagen is very happy with everything she has done and shared her most memorable moments that she will cherish forever,
“I can’t say there has just been one, there have been a few; but my top two would have to be taking home first place at Spartan stadium race and bringing home another title, Miss Gauteng first princess,” said Welthagen.
Welthagen loves adventure and new challenges, but at the same time, she loves competing in beauty competitions and making a difference, two combinations one would never say go together. But Welthagen wants to prove that you can be both a princess and a sport fanatic.
“One of the things that’s most important to me is living my life to the fullest.
“I believe that anything is possible with hard work and dedication and I want to inspire the youth of today by telling them my story.
“Its been a journey to get to where I am today because as a little girl, I had very low muscle tone so it was difficult to build muscle and today I’m doing things bigger than I have ever dreamed, like competing in various sports, such as Crossfit, OCR and boxing.
“I struggled my whole school career due to Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) and had a private tutor
“Today, however, I have an NQF 5 in real estate. I’m one of South Africa’s youngest Master Practitioners in Real Estate (MPRE) and have opened my own real estate company.
“It took me four years to win Miss Benoni, and, in three years, I’ve brought home three titles, and am now also working with Top Model South Africa.
“Anything is possible if you believe in yourself.
“I’m so grateful to my parents and to special people in my life who made me realise this. I wouldn’t be who I am without them,” said Welthagen.
