MY FAVOURITE FIVE

It's almost the end of another year, and another decade for that matter, and I guess I should name my favourite Miss South Africa's for the period. This is not a list of the "best" or "most popular", but rather a list of winners that I particularly liked in the lead-up to and during their reigns.

01: Cindy Nell

Whilst I had Cindy pegged for a Top 5 place at the Miss SA pageant, her victory did come as a bit of a surprise to me. What I never figured on was her drive, passion and desire to succeed. Her performance at Miss Universe was fantastic and she should, at least, have placed second.

02: Nicole Flint

Nicole is, in my opinion, the most beautiful of the group. Unfortunately she has yet to prove herself on the international stage and she must, in this instance, place behind Cindy Nell. If she pulls out the stops at Miss Universe, she could very well emulate Margaret Gardiner and win the pageant.

03: Jo-Ann Strauss

I never really noticed Jo-Ann during the lead-up to the Miss SA pageant and admittedly raised an eyebrow when she was named as the winner. But wow! She turned out to be the epitome of style, elegance and class, and was unfortunate to place in the Top 15 at Miss Universe when only the Top 10 progressed during the telecast.

04: Vanessa Carreira

Whilst I wasn't a huge fan of Vanessa Carreira prior to and during her reign, she sizzled at the Miss Universe pageant and her swimsuit performance was the best ever by a South African at any international pageant.

05: Claudia Henkel

Claudia was a head and shoulders (literally and figuratively) above the rest at the Miss SA pageant. I had high hopes for her at Miss Universe and, despite some really questionable styling, she should have placed much higher than she did.

I really liked Megan Coleman and was very disappointed with her "KZN beach bum" attitude which undoubtedly cost her a place in the semi-finals at Miss Universe in spite of a sizzling performance during the presentation show.

As for the rest, I suppose I'm going to go with the "they were unique and special in their own way" routine.