Mr and Miss Pretoria Gay Pride 2015 crowned

The first Mr and Miss Pretoria Gay Pride pageant took place at Funny Farm Lodge near Cullinan, on Saturday 26 September, during the four-day FabFest festival.

Steph Jansen van Vuuren (31) was named Mr Pretoria Gay Pride 2015 while Victoria Styles (21) was crowned Miss Pretoria Gay Pride 2015.

“This is only the start for the impact the pageant will make in the LGBTI community and only the beginning of great things to come,” said Jansen van Vuuren.

The stunner, who already holds the Pink Loerie festival title of Mr Mardi Gras 2015, also won Mr Congeniality, Mr Photogenic and the Best Media Award.

Styles said that it was “an absolute adventure, being part of this pioneering project. Branching out to the community is such a privilege and honour, and the organisers and judges just made it all the better.”

Styles also walked away with the Miss Congeniality, Miss Photogenic, and Miss Extravagance titles.

The other ‘Mr finalists’ were Christo Snyman (23), Heinricht Meintjies (26), Pierre Eksteen (30) and Pieter Pretorius (28). The three other ‘Miss finalists’ were Amber Szolinski (20), Camilla Coppertone (44) and KourtneyB Lane (36).

Eksteen won the title of Mr Body Beautiful, is the 1st ‘Mr runner-up’ and will be joining Jansen van Vuuren and Styles at Pretoria Gay Pride on Saturday. KourtneyB Lane is the 1st ‘Miss runner-up’.

The finals took place after a meet-and-greet with the judges and organisers earlier this month at Nuvo Cuisine in Pretoria East. The finals were held a week before Pretoria Gay Pride, so that the winners will be able to lead the parade on the 3rd of October.

“The winners have been chosen by a very credible judging panel. Each winner had a 20- to 30-minute personal interview with the judges,” which included their views on various LGBTI issues, said Frans Zeelie, Operations Manager for the pageant.

“We wanted winners who share the ideology of being an inspiring representative of the LGBTI community with a passion for life, and to be a role model for future generations with good values,” added Zeelie.

The judges were Marelize Gloy (advising attorney at law); Gary Scallan (owner of Barbet Communications and DA Ekurhuleni Municipality Councillor); Megan Carreira (former Miss Mardi Gras, former Miss Diva SA and practising attorney at law); and Karl-Heinz Michel (Production Manager for the pageant, singer and model, Mr Legends 2009, and a finalist for Mr Gay South Africa 2010).

Michel commented that, “Steph and Victoria are true ambassadors for the Gauteng LGBTI community, and I look forward to seeing them grow and excel in their futures.”

Check out more pictures of the pageant below. For details on Pretoria Pride 2015 click here.