Zimbabwe's Tracey-Anne is Mrs Universe First Runner Up

Pride of Zimbabwe...Tracey-Anne  is Mrs Uni runner up

By Robert Mukondiwa

Bulawayo has definitely reinforced its card as the City of Kings and Queens even on the orient stage with Bulawayo born Tracey Anne Buckley-Aggett delivering a heart-string tugging performance to land the position of first runner up in the Mrs Universe pageant finals in Guangzhou-China.


Ahead of a field of seventy contestants, Aggett presented The Domino Effects Of Domestic Violence, which spelt out the challenges faced by women and children in an abusive chauvinistic world.


She showed an almost palpable desire to work to highlight the plight of the suffering, presenting herself as a possible champion in the fight for women’s rights and the rights of the vulnerable and won over the judges.


Speaking the language of love and affection, a language more powerful than any dialect on earth, Aggett melted the hearts of the listeners and ignited the fire of her passionate beliefs in them.


“When they called out my name that I was the first runner up, I looked up as they raised our national flag. I felt such joy and pride and wanted everyone to know how incredible and beautiful my country is and how warm our people are and not the images they see on international news channels,” said an ecstatic Aggett.


Yet Aggett was not just playing to the gallery with a well-choreographed heart tugging tale of feigned love and care; she is a real champion of the rights of the deprived and underprivileged.


With her ‘Chains of Care’ non-profit organisation, she runs a sustained program in which she partners with social workers and psychologists assisting her community. Her work has now attracted immense interest from China and several other competing countries.


She is also a brand ambassador for Barbor South Africa and her win immediately triggered retweets and love from fellow Bulawayo notables including Politician and Twimbo David Coltart as well as Zandile 'Zaza' Ndlovu giving her some love on the social networking site.



"Congratulations to Tracey-Anne Buckley Aggett for flying the Zimbabwe flag high by clinching the 1st Princess...: (sic) Zaza tweeted.



With the support of her husband Simon Aggett, Tracey-Anne has in her own personal life overcome adversity having been exposed to abuse in her early years having had a front row seat to the pains of abuse of women.


After a gruesome exercise of interviews, tours of China, development of commercials for sponsoring companies and presentations on causes closest to their hearts, contestants then end the seven-day program and head for the main event.


On the day of the finale, they go through four rounds showcasing their cultural dress, mature fashion piece for working mothers, a Chinese Qipao dress and a glamorous evening gown.


Tracey-Anne designed her glamorous evening gown and partnered with local Bulawayo designer Yvette Ndaba of fashion label Eve-O! for her cultural dress.


Olga Torner from Austria with Zimbabwe being the first runner up, followed by Peru, China and the Netherlands in second, third and fourth runners up respectively.


The Mrs Universe Pageant is an international competition that seeks to use beauty for the sake of fighting for human rights.


It is open to women who are either married, divorced or single parents, who have a passion for advocacy and charity work and are successful entrepreneurs.


It ran from August 29 to September 4 in Guangzhou China.


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