Cape Town - Nearly a year ago, 19-year-old Joey Roman from Kuils River promised she would take Khoisan dress to the international stage, and she did exactly that when she represented South Africa at the Miss Teen Supranational 2022 in Ecuador.
Roman arrived back in South Africa earlier this week and, although she did not walk off with the crown, she won the Best Body award at the pageant.
The competition and title fall under Miss Teen World SA.
She is proud of her accomplishments, stating that a girl who once walked the streets of Delft had made it to the international stage, and she is not giving up her goal of achieving the crowns for either Miss South Africa or Miss Universe one day.
“I am a girl from Delft and look where my dreams took me to – to Ecuador,” she said.
“I will still continue with my mission, whether I win or not, to one day get a big title like Miss Universe or Miss South Africa.”
The Miss Teen World SA page says: “Miss Teen Supranational 2022
Beautiful Joey Roman. Awarded Best Body at Miss Teen Supranational 2022 in Ecuador.”
Earlier this year, Roman competed against 100 contestants and made it to the top 10. She was then placed in the top five and crowned Miss Teen Supranational South Africa on July 2.
Roman made headlines in Weekend Argus in January when she reached the finals of the Teen Universe South Africa competition, where she wore Khoisan attire arranged by founders of Koena Art Institute & KwaaiKhoi (Pty) Ltd – the specialist Khoisan art, culture and events company – Lukretia Booysen and Jolene Martin of Arendsvlei.
Martin herself had dressed up in a Khoisan-inspired outfit in 2018, which went viral in the entertainment industry.
On the South American stage, dressmaker Ridvone Martin and designer Erique Contemporary Designs were responsible for her unique Khoi outfit, while the bow and arrow were from Khoena Beauty Bar and the headpiece and necklace from @Aunty Lizle.
Roman proudly wore her Khoi attire, explaining that it was designed with her personality and character in mind.
“The three animals I found are very close to Joey's character. As a young woman, I chose to use the real material (skin, quills, feathers) of these animals in the garment,” the designer and dressmaker wrote on Facebook.
“The bodice is made with pure/real springbok skin – the springbok is a strikingly marked, gazelle-like antelope.
“It has a white face with dark stripes from the mouth to the eyes, a reddish-brown coat that turns to a darker shade and then to white on the lower third of its body, and a white backside.
“This symbolises how much of a mixed-race and an indigenous nation we are. Springboks are also one of the rarest antelope species with a thriving population of 2 million-plus.
“Despite being the national animal of South Africa, they are hunted as game across the continent for their prized meat and skin.
“On the corset of the Springbok skin, I have added five porcupine quills. These quills protect the porcupine from predators when they are encountered head-on.
“Porcupines never shoot these quills, but they are deadly when encountered in an attack against their enemy.”
Roman said being in Ecuador had been a thrilling experience: “I got to travel and meet people from different parts of the world and see what their cultures were like.
“I got to wear my Khoisan attire, which made me very proud.
“We were a group of seven who represented South Africa, and four of us came back with a title.”
Her mother, Tania Roman, said not only had her daughter made it to the international stage, but she had also inspired young girls to to reach for their dreams.
“My husband and I are very proud of her. We were nervous to send her alone to a foreign country, but she had grown and we were very emotional seeing her on stage.
“Even if it is just one girl she touched by being on an international stage as a young person of Khoisan descent, then she has done her job.
“We are very proud that she took her heritage to the stage, and we want to thank everyone who played a role – her designer who made her garments for free, her sponsors, and her huge support system.
“Who knows what the future holds for Joey? She is done with the teen pageants, so now she can join the Miss SA category.”