Ayanda Thabethe, 24, captured attention with her impressive modelling skills on the runway at the Miss Supranational Preliminary show on Monday night.
Miss Supranational is a yearly international beauty pageant for women that started in 2009. This year’s competition will be held on 14 July at the Strzelecki Park Amphitheater in Nowy Sącz, Małopolska, Poland.
South African model and beauty queen Lalela Mswane, who won the Miss Supranational 2022 title, will crown the winner of the pageant at the end of the event.
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Ayanda Thabethe’s Miss Supranational journey
Ayanda, who hails from Taylor’s Halt outside Pietermaritzburg, KwaZulu-Natal, was awarded the title of first runner-up at the Miss South Africa pageant, held in Pretoria on 13 August 2022.
The Miss South Africa organisation announced in February this year that Ayanda would be representing the country at one of the pageants’ biggest nights, Miss Supranational.
Last year, the organisation surprised the nation when they announced that Miss SA 2021 Lalela Mswane would represent the country at the Miss Supranational pageant.
Traditionally the runner-ups usually take centre stage for this international competition while the winner represents SA through Miss Universe or Miss World.
Ayanda a favourite at Miss Supranational
Representing South Africa for the 14th edition of the Miss Supranational beauty pageant, Ayanda unveiled her preliminary dress this week.
She also won one of the top five Miss Supranational slots after a set of brilliant answers during the finals of #suprachat 2023, along with Canada, India, Peru and the Philippines.
Ayanda gracefully exhibited her talents on stage on Tuesday night, showcasing her beauty for all to see, so it should come as no surprise that she is a favourite.
‘Goddess rising from the ocean’
Ayanda floated onto the stage in a beautiful light blue gown designed by fashion designer Juan Visser of the brand Juan William Aria. The beauty queen looked every inch the goddess she is as she confidently strutted the stage.
“The turquoise gown was inspired by the beautiful KwaZulu-Natal coastline and its bright ocean waters. Ayanda feels spiritually connected to water, so we knew that we needed to draw inspiration from water as it was so close to her heart, Visser said in a statement on Wednesday morning.
He explained that they played a lot with transparency and contrast for both gowns Ayanda wore.
“When Ayanda walked in the turquoise gown, we achieved the effect of crashing ocean waves. Our main goal was to be daring, bold and, most importantly, impactful,” said Visser.
The designer said Ayanda had considerable input with the designs of her gowns as they should not only be beautiful but have a special meaning to her as well to make her feel at her most beautiful and confident.
Both of Ayanda’s gowns were hand crafted and beaded and took more than 100 hours each to complete.
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Ayanda Thabethe rocking a ‘swimwear’ outfit
No matter what she wears, Ayanda always appears flawless in her outfits, and last night was no exception when she showcased a swimwear outfit on stage.
With confidence, she rocked the poses and continued to impress the audience with her talent.
What it takes to ‘dazzle’ on stage
Achieving beauty requires time and patience as it involves putting in effort and presenting oneself in the best possible way.
Prior to her appearance on stage last night, Ayanda dedicated time behind the scenes to enhance her appearance and become the captivating figure that people would vote for.
A video documenting her preparations was captured, offering fans a glimpse into the behind-the-scenes process of getting ready to dazzle on stage.
Watch the video below.
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