Online Reporter
HAI PHONG. – There are few settings more cinematic for a runway than the edge of the sea.
Yesterday, the 111 national ambassadors competing at the 75th Anniversary Miss World traded the traditional stage for the Vietnamese coastline as Vietnam Beauty Fashion Fest XVI unfolded at Dragon Beach, part of the Dragon Ocean Đồ Sơn International Tourist Area in Hải Phòng.
Brunette Makanyiso is representing Zimbabwe.
This year’s theme, “The Green World,” placed nature at the heart of the spectacle, bringing together fashion, landscape and an international cast of talented and socially-engaged women.
But beneath the glamour, there was serious competition. Vietnam Beauty Fashion Fest XVI hosted the first round of the Miss World Top Model challenge, one of the events on the road to the Miss World crown.
For the occasion, the national ambassadors were divided into groups and took to the runway individually, wearing creations by Vietnamese designers Lasen Vũ, Eric Moon – Duy Trần, Hà Duy, Khang Trịnh and Trang Vũ for Janie Bridal.
The clothes provided the visual drama but they did not determine the result. The judging focussed specifically on how each national ambassador performed as a model, assessing her runway presence, confidence, poise and ability to present a designer’s creation.
The design she was assigned to wear did not form part of her Top Model evaluation.
From this first runway, 40 national ambassadors will be selected to advance to the second round of the Top Model challenge, which will take place in Nha Trang on August 28.
While only the 40 qualifiers will remain in contention for the continental Top Model titles, all of the Miss World national ambassadors will return to the catwalk on August 28, this time wearing designs representing their own countries as they compete for the World Designer Award.
The Top 40 selected in Hải Phòng will therefore face two very different fashion moments in Nha Trang: celebrating national creativity alongside the entire field while continuing their own Top Model journey. From that group, the continental Top Model winners will be determined, earning a coveted place in the final Miss World Top 40.
The overall winner, to be announced on September, will secure a spot in the Top 20.
For Miss World, the Top Model challenge tests the ability to command a runway, communicate without words and transform a few seconds beneath the lights into a memorable fashion moment.
Against the sea and under the banner of “The Green World,” that test began in Hải Phòng.
And with the competition moving ever closer to its September 5 finale in Nha Trang, every step down the runway now carries considerably more weight. – Miss World
