Daddy’s my hero
For two Miss South Africa semifinalists, their fathers are an inspiration to shine
MISS South Africa semifinalist Jessica Tovey has a secret weapon. It’s not her looks, her degree or her charity work — it’s her legendary father, former Bafana Bafana captain Neil Tovey.
The 23-year-old speech therapist and audiologist is one of the 26 semifinalists vying to be Miss South Africa 2017.
Tovey, who inspired the national football team to victory in 1996, has also inspired his daughter. But while he thinks it’s his stint as a Miss South Africa judge in 1998 which sparked her interest, Jessica revealed it was Bafana’s triumph at the Africa Cup of Nations in 1996.
“It really showed me that if someone so close to me can achieve their dream then it can happen for me as well,” she said.
As South African Football Association technical director, Tovey could not help but coach Jessica during her interview with the Sunday Times, suggesting ways to refine her answers. He joked that she got her “good genes” from him, and she complimented him on looking good.
Tovey said he had always known that being in the Miss South Africa pageant was his daughter’s dream. Jessica always wanted to tag along to charity functions where he interacted with former winners. He told her to “have total belief” in herself.
Jessica said: “The advice that he’s given me is never to compare myself to others and that’s what I keep with me in this environment where there are so many other girls.”
Fellow semifinalist Boipelo Mabe, 23, is also inspired by her dad, Stephen Kotlolo. He may not be a national sports hero, but the Alexandra taxi driver is a hero to his family.
Aware of the stereotypes that surround her community, Mabe is neither ashamed nor apologetic about her childhood. She embodies the notion that a person is not defined by where he or she comes from. The University of the Witwatersrand student, who freelances as a news reader on Soweto TV, is the main breadwinner in her family and is doing her masters degree in international relations.
While she was still in school, her father reminded her that she was getting the same education as the children whose dads drove expensive cars.
“I didn’t want people to know that my dad was a taxi driver and my mom was unemployed. It was something I used to be embarrassed about.
“I experienced a lot of taunting but I grew up and I embraced my story. I realised that just because I come from Alex does not mean I can’t be something,” she said.
While most of the semifinalists have dreamt about being in the pageant all their lives, this was not the case for Western Cape hopeful Dr Adé van Heerden. The medical doctor and lieutenant in the South African National Defence Force said she was not used to getting glammed up.
“Being in the force is about being strong and assertive but being a doctor is about being kind, compassionate and caring and when you can put those two things together, that is what Miss South Africa means to me,” she said.
The semifinalists from Gauteng are: Mabe, Devoney Crossman, Iman Mkwanazi, Tovey, Keipeile Dintoe, Nicole van Niekerk, Nompumelelo Mampholo, Ntombikayise Msimango, Odirile Sepeng, Saskia Wagner, Shané Naidoo, Shelbe Pretorius, Tshegofatso Monggae and Yuta Raubenheimer.
The Western Cape semifi- nalists are Van Heerden, Callie-Jo Bouman, Chante Holloway, Demi-Leigh Nel-Peters, Lou-Marie Taljaard and OlinShae de la Cruz.
From KwaZulu-Natal come Priyeshka Lutchman, Shenai Bridglall and Kayla Malherbe. Mpumalanga’s only hope is Michelle Kruger, Limpopo has Milanie Cilliers and the Eastern Cape is represented by Zozibini Tunzi.
The final is in March, but contestants will go through several elimination rounds at Sun City in the months leading up to it.
The advice that he’s given me is never to compare myself to others