WITH the Miss World Fiji crowning night less than a week away, pageant director Andhy Blake is confident the winner will make a name for Fiji on the Miss World stage later this year.
Mr Blake said the girls have exceptionally improved since the castings earlier this year.
“From castings so far, the contestants have come out of their shell, are a lot more confident and in terms of their appearance and personalities they are starting to look like Miss World contestants,” he said.
“It’s going to be hard because we have really good girls this year but in terms of talent, the talent round is going to be really good for whoever wins.
“I think Fiji might definitely make a mark this year in terms of placing really well.”
He said initially there were 15 young women contesting the pageant title, but one dropped out because of work commitments.
The contestants will have their private judging at the Grand Pacific Hotel (GPH) this week Thursday, giving an opportunity for judges to know them better in a more relaxed setting.
The judges will be Miss World Fiji 2013 Caireen Erbslebe, Miss World Fiji 2014 Charlene Tafuna’i , Miss World Fiji 2016 Pooja Priyanka, James Bolabiu, and musician Inoke Kalounisiga (‘Knox’).
Mr Blake also said the 14 contestants had their rehearsals during the weekend to prepare their routine for the crowning night.
There will be five preliminary awards given out with the categories; Miss Photogenic, Best Talent, Best Evening Gown, Top Model and Multi-media.
Tickets for the grand finals cost $100 and are available at The Fiji Broadcasting Corporation.
The crowning event will take place at GPH this week Saturday.
