�Don�t give up on your dreams�
Dumisani Ncube | Friday October 6, 2017 11:51
Nicole Gaelebale’s journey in the most coveted pageant in the country started around 2009 when she was scouted by the Miss Botswana team. At the time she was just crowned Miss Teen Botswana and the team urged her to join the pageant. However, it was not long after the scouting that the team later discovered that she was doing Form Five and advised her to instead enlist the following year.
“I came back the following year. This is when I tried out with Emma (Wareus). I tried with Rose (Rosemary Keofitlhetse) the following pageant and I also tried with Thata (Kenosi). There is no such thing as I have overdone something. Never give up on your dreams. Never get tired of doing what you love until you get it right,” 26-year-old Gaelebale said. She claims to have drawn the zeal from her mother who advised her not to give up despite her previous failures.
In 2015 she was almost crowned Miss Botswana when she became first princess to Seneo Mabengano. Her story is somewhat similar to that of Miss South Africa 2016 Ntandoyenkosi Kunene, who started trying out her luck in the Miss South Africa pageant when she was 18-years-old and only got to be crowned last year at 23. “I am inspired by people such as Ntando. If you have a dream don’t give up on it, chase it. People will always try to take you down, you have to believe in yourself. If you don’t, you will end up losing yourself.” With all the experience she had gathered from previous Miss Botswana stages over the years Gaelebale said this time around she decided to relax, enjoy herself in the pageant, which she believes contributed to her earning the crown. She went on to state that in this year’s pageant she went in with a mind that she is preparing for the Miss World pageant. “I took this year’s pageant as practice for Miss World, which is my prize and took it seriously,” Gaelebale said. She will be leaving the country for Miss World in three weeks’ time where she will contest with over 50 queens from different countries. After her win, many including former beauty queens of the pageant expressed their dissatisfaction, especially on social media stating that Gaelebale did not deserve to win. The former queens said various things about her. “People are entitled to their own opinions. I am genuinely happy despite what people are saying,” she said. Just like many when she won the crown she was not aware of how much she was to receive, as she stated that her main focus and prize was to go to Miss World and think about the rest later. As someone who has been in pageantry for sometime Gaelebale owns a grooming and modelling school. She is also a multimedia student at Limkokwing University of Creative Technology and a part-time accountant.
The question that many would want to ask is, does she have a boyfriend? She was quick to respond saying that she is single, but her ideal man is one that is loyal and goal-driven.
Two of her younger siblings are aspiring models with one looking forward to campaign for Miss Botswana soon.