Cape Town - After years of having more than one beauty queen represent the Western Cape in the Miss South Africa pageant, this year the province has only one contender vying for the coveted Miss SA 2024 title.
Following the announcement of the top 30 Miss SA contestants earlier this week, 28-year-old Mia le Roux was announced as the only participant from the Western Cape.
Le Roux a marketing manager, model and part-time BCom marketing student was born in Sasolburg in the Free State and was raised in Oudtshoorn with her brother Schalk le Roux by their parents Liesel and Schalk le Roux.
Currently, the 28-year-old marketer model lives in Rosebank, Cape Town.
Le Roux was diagnosed with profound hearing loss at the age of one and shared that her community rallied behind her to give her the gift of hearing, inspiring her desire to make a positive impact and break barriers.
Commenting on her entering the 2024 edition of the Miss SA beauty pageant, Le Roux said that she had noticed that previous title holders have made incredible progress in terms of inclusivity and redefining what beauty means.
“I believe I deserve to win the title as I embody resilience, strength and the ubuntu spirit within South Africa.
“As a deaf woman with a cochlear implant, I represent a community that often goes unheard.
“I am here to prove that, despite being differently-abled, it has not affected me. My journey is a testament to the power of dreams and determination we all possess.
“I have made it my mission to spread awareness and educate wherever I am able about the challenges faced by the deaf. We do not need sympathy, being deaf does not affect our intelligence and capability. We just need a little bit of help in terms of accessibility and inclusivity such as subtitles on TV shows, advertisements and sign interpreters at live shows.”
“I aspire to eventually help provide cochlear implants to those who cannot afford it and give them the same gift my community has given me,” Le Roux said.
Sharing a bit more information about herself and her life, Le Roux said that she loved animals and food and conducting scientific experiments to create organic and highly bio-available food products such as food or cosmetics.
“Other interesting titbits are that I often received awards for being a bookworm during my school years and that I attended the Carel du Toit centre from the age of one up until I was five years old. Carel du Toit is where the deaf learn to speak,” she said.
nomalanga.tshuma@inl.co.za