[imagesource: Mr South Africa]

When the top 10 Mr South Africa contestants were announced, it was met with the sort of social media backlash that we’ve come to expect since JP Robberts took over in 2018.

It didn’t help that the photos of the finalists looked like they’d been taken on a cheap smartphone.

Robberts clapped back by saying that it’s not a beauty competition, organisers are looking for brand ambassadors, the competition needs time to grow, and so on.

Anyway, it’s over now, and one of them walked away with the crown, or rather, the sash.

Your new Mr South Africa is Hannes Van Der Walt.

Per eNCA, he hopes to be a role model for his community.

“The Mr South Africa brand is one I admired and Henrich Gabler’s year of reigning inspired me to go out and inspire others as well,” Van Der Walt said.

Ah, so that’s who won last year.

Due to the pandemic, the event was live-streamed on Saturday, November 28. You had to buy tickets at R99 a pop, and the event was judged by Aretha Bauwens, Saskia Riley, and Storm Johnson.

Before we move on to the moment that Van Der Walt was ‘crowned’ let’s revisit the top 10, in a video showcasing the production value and class that we’ve come to expect from the competition.

A full minute of it is dedicated to sponsors, so skip ahead to the one minute mark:

The flames, though…

Anyway, here’s your new Mr SA, standing around, while he waits to have his name called:

You can also check out that anticlimatic moment on Instagram.

During his formal interview, Van Der Walt said:

“I have an great passion for families, I grew up with an awesome dad, as a result I am able to be a good father to my own children. We are all mind, body and soul and I believe if we keep track of all three of those, we will have healthy families. I would love to use this platform to raise better men, to raise better dads and in doing so, create a better South Africa.”

He also spoke to eNCA:

You can see him reading the statement that the organisers made about the competition, at the 56-second mark.

Here it is for comparison:

“Mr South Africa is a platform to find the best male ambassador for our country. Somebody that younger generations look up to. A man that inspires.”

The organisers added, “we won’t look for a male model, we are looking for a real-life everyday hero.”

Verbatim.

While we’re at it we might as well give the runners up a mention.

First runner up: De Villier Koster

 

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Second runner up: Lee Jordan Jacobs

 

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Peak awkward.

Look, Hannes, we’ve got nothing against you.

Congrats, and may your reign be… whatever it is.

We’re not really sure what Mr South Africa does.

[source:enca]