A new Miss South Africa titleholder will be crowned in Pretoria on Sunday, 13 August.
With returning host Bonang Matheba expected to “bring all the sparkle and magic” she can and a brand-new crown, dubbed Mowana, the ‘Tree of Life’, there is plenty to look forward to in this year’s Miss South Africa 2023 pageant. As the glittering event gets closer, here are all the details to know so you don’t miss out on the action.
The finalists: The top seven vying for the crown are Anke Rothmann (23) from the Northern Cape; Bryoni Govender (26) from Gauteng; Homba Mazaleni (23) from the Eastern Cape; Jordan van der Vyver (27) from the Western Cape; Melissa Nayimuli (27) from the Eastern Cape; Nande Mabala (25) from the Western Cape and Natasha Joubert (25) from Gauteng.
Outgoing Miss South Africa Ndavi Nokeri will crown her successor during a live event at Sun International’s SunBet Arena at Time Square on Sunday. It will also be broadcast live from 18:30 on SABC 3 and live-streamed for international audiences on the Miss South Africa app.
Tickets: Tickets to the highly anticipated event are available from the Miss South Africa website, app and Ticketpro, and prices range from R300 to R1500
A new crown: Another change to this year’s Miss South Africa pageant is the new crown, dubbed Mowana, the ‘Tree of Life’, debuted earlier in the week.
It is the brainchild of Nungu Diamonds creative director and co-founder Ursula Pule. Nungu Diamonds is the exclusive crown and jewellery sponsor for Miss South Africa for the next three years and has already designed pieces for local celebrities such as Connie Ferguson, Somizi Mhlongo and Dineo Langa.
Pule said her inspiration for the new crown came from a 2019 safari in Musina, Limpopo.
“The next morning, on a game drive, I saw the sun rising behind a baobab and was mesmerised. That was my inspiration, and I have carried that vision with me all these years,” Pule said. “When it was time to design the crown, I thought that there was nothing better to represent our country and our company, Nungu Diamonds.
Entertainment: Some entertainment industry heavyweights, including Siki Jo-An, Jimmy Nevis, Brenda Mthambo and Robot, will give dazzling performances during the finale.
“We are very excited about the entertainment lined up for this year’s pageant. We really wanted to present something new, something classic, something fresh and something unexpected in the pageant world but in line with our messaging,” Miss South Africa boss Stephanie Weil said. “Having the range of performers that we lined up grace our stage is only fitting for a night where we crown our next Miss South Africa.”
“It will be a big night of enthralling performances, and audiences can expect to move and be moved during the show.”
Judging panel: This year’s judging panel for the beauty pageant consists of reigning Miss Universe R’Bonney Gabriel, Leandie du Randt, Devi Sankaree Govender, Jo-Ann Strauss and L’Oréal Paris brand ambassador and actor Thuso Mbedu.
Prizes: The winner of this year’s Miss South Africa will receive a package of prizes and sponsorships valued at more than R3 million when she takes the crown
