Fitness fundi simply the beauty
 
First-year Bachelor of Arts student Simone Hames has been crowned as the new UWC Miss Varsity Shield after she came out top in a tough competition with 14 other contestants. Hames will represent the University of the Western Cape at the annual Miss Varsity Shield national pageant on 31 March 2014 at the Central University of Technology. She will be competing against four other ladies from the University of Fort Hare, the Tshwane University of Technology, the Central University of Technology and the University of KwaZulu-Natal – institutions that have been taking part in the Varsity Shield rugby competition along with UWC.

Hames says she was randomly approached one day by last year’s Miss Varsity Shield, Jill Caster, who asked her outside the B-Block building whether she would like to participate in the competition.

She says what she liked most about taking part in the contest was the fact that the other girls cared about more than competing. Everybody was friendly and she felt comfortable participating.

Hames, a fitness fundi who loves to jog and hike, was excited when she won the UWC Miss Varsity Shield title, and says that winning was a big deal for her because it was her first time taking part in a pageant.

She is looking forward to getting to know the other girls from the other universities, and to soak up the vibe of the rugby competition, because it has always been very exciting.

Hames, who also enjoys writing poetry and reading, believes that what will make her stand out from the rest is her natural appearance because not many girls are comfortable with being natural. She adds “My humility, personality, and the fact that I always encourage other girls to love themselves, will make me stand out from the rest”.
 
Her chief duties as Miss UWC Varsity Shield will be to support rugby games, and to assist the UWC rugby players as they do charity work at the Saartjie Baartman Centre.

Hames, who used to play basketball and do cross-country at school, is currently majoring in English and Political Studies, and would like to pursue a career in journalism one day. Her motto is “Experience and learn from your mistakes.”

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