New Mr South Africa 2014 unveiled

The handsome 26-year-old law graduate said the reality of his win had yet to settle in. He added that being announced the winner would provide him with a platform to make a difference in other people’s lives.

“Winning the title has provided me with a platform to be a role model,” he said. “It has truly opened up many doors for me.”

The Roodepoort resident added that winning Mr South Africa meant that he could inspire young people to do better and uplift themselves.

Flanking the new Mr SA were the first and second runner-ups, Morne Marais and Sibusiso Sibanda respectively, who also talked about making a difference in the lives of others.

Present at the announcement was Madelain Roscher, managing director at PR Worx and one of the judges, who announced that a decision was taken to make the 12 finalists ambassadors of Mr South Africa.

“We decided to make all of them ambassadors because we believe in selecting role models and not male models,” she stressed.

She added that the ambassadors would decide which issues they would take on, with the top three winners focusing on upliftment, anti-bullying and education.

Chief executive officer of Mr South Africa, Rudi Baker said the competition was a way “to inspire young South African men to be the best they can be [and] to mould the contestants into role models”.

The Mr South Africa competition took place at EngGedi, Sterkfontein on 28 January and saw 12 finalists compete for the title.