TWENTY-ONE-YEAR-OLD Vanessa Nkosinomusa Hadebe has been crowned Miss Zimbabwe UK 2009.

The communications student from Daggenham, Essex, will now have a crack at the Miss Tourism Zimbabwe crown in Harare later this year.

Sharon Mwanza, 20, was first princess and Shupikai Nyatito, 21, was second princess at Saturday’s ZimExpo-organised pageant held in Woking.

Mwanza also won the public vote in online voting for Miss Photogenic, while Anita Dile won Miss Personality – voted for by the contestants.

Bulawayo-born Vanessa was crowd favourite the moment she stepped on the runway in the Traditional African Wear category -- her top woven into a modern African pride paired with a Taffeta full skirt.

She looked sleek and barely covered in her unique one-piece swimsuit in the Swim Wear category. Her corset-style white swim suit greatly accentuated her thin frame and further elongating her forever stretching legs.

New Zimbabwe.com fashion columnist Roseline Skye Chirape remarked: “I just cannot believe anyone would swim in such a get up!”

Radiant ... Miss Zimbabwe UK 2009 Vanessa Hadebe

Vanessa applied the coup de grace to her competition with a stunning silk chiffon Indigo evening strapless gown to show off her well toned shoulders.

Chirape said: “It's super light fabric, it’s easily wearable. That was super versatile styling -- well tailored, and it's fabulous! The satin fabric roses embedded on and cascading down the front cry out 'couture'.

“It was elegant and gracious as she swept across the catwalk. Her evening dress was certainly a ‘how so to-die-for’ and appeared to be calling out to the audience from the centre of the room.

“I’m hardly a leopard print girl but leopard print fashion items are everywhere and hell yeah she pulls it off, the shoe accessorizes the dress extensively.”

The beaming beauty told New Zimbabwe.com after her triumph: “It was my first time. I saw it on Facebook a few months ago that they were looking for models and I said let me try it out and see how it goes.

“When we did the first rehearsal, I was like ‘wow, I’m really doing this’. So my attitude from then on was ‘what have I got to lose?’”

The Brunel University student lives with her mum after coming to England as a 12-year-old in 2000.

Vanessa told of her delight at meeting former Miss Global International and Miss Tourism Zimbabwe 2007 winner Cynthia Muvirimi, who hogged the limelight in stunning outfits as an emcee alongside the brilliant former Radio 3 presenter Kevin Ncube.

“I thought they were both fantastic. Cynthia was stunning and Kevin was so nice to all the girls, we were lucky to have them both presenting the show,” she said.

Top three ... Vanessa flanked by second princess Shupikai Nyatito (left)
and first princess Sharon Mwanza

The politically-savvy Vanessa wants to use her reign to support the rebranding of Zimbabwe as a place to do business and visit.

She said: “The whole motto of this year’s Miss Zimbabwe was ‘raising the bar’, and I will try my best to get out there and promote Zimbabwe. Things are changing in our country, there is a positive outlook and the duty is on all of us to highlight that positivity.”

She was full of praise for the other contestants at this year’s pageant which was hailed by organisers as “the best so far”.

“It was tough competition,” she said. “We had a full range of beautiful girls representing Zimbabwe.”

Vanessa says she would have taken failure to win in her stride. “If you don’t get an opportunity to win, don’t look at it as if you are inadequate … We are all beautiful in different ways, beauty is within us.”

Stunner ... Vanessa Hadebe

For someone who came to England at such a young age, the former Dominican Convent student’s grasp of her native Ndebele language remains strong – and she credits her mum.

“I refuse to abandon my Ndebele, my mother won’t let me,” she says, “You can’t lose touch of your language … it’s your heritage, something special.”

Former Radio 2 DJ Ezra Tshisa Sibanda, Southern Africa Achievers Awards founder Conrad Mwanza and Miss Malaika UK organiser Hilda Mulenga were among the panel of judges.

Outgoing ... Miss Zimbabwe UK 2008 winner Anesu Chiwura with host Kevin Ncube