If her progression is any indication, Chantelle Deacon has a shot at her goal of a top-five finish at the Miss Swimsuit USA International contest in Cancun starting Monday.
The 20-year-old Vernon Secondary graduate didn’t make the top-10 at her first-ever swimsuit competition this summer, the Miss Tropic Beauty, at the Calgary Stampede.
But then, a few weeks later, Deacon finished third overall at the Centre of Gravity festival in Kelowna. After that, she qualified for Miss Swimsuit USA International at a Kelowna nightclub.
“I’m definitely going for the top-five,” said Deacon. “Lots of girls are quite a bit older, most are around 25. I’ll be one of the youngest.”
Deacon is one of 75 finalists chosen from more than 20,000 contestants around the world to be in Cancun.
She’ll have her parents there for support as she competes in the swimsuit, gown and cocktail dress competitions. Each contestant must give a speech and all will take part in a group dance.
The winner receives $5,000 and a $15,000 modeling contract with L.A. Models.
A former track and field and cross-country running star, Deacon isn’t using the swimsuit competition as a modeling springboard. She wants to be in the media.
“I want to be a talk show host,” said Deacon, who studied to be a media major during her two years on a track/cross-country scholarship at a university in Georgia, and who plans to move to Vancouver next year to study broadcast communications at BCIT.
“I think it (swimsuit competition) could help potentially get me in the media industry. I’ve looked at lots of TV hosts’ biographies and almost all of them have BCIT on their bios.”
Deacon said she entered the Miss Tropic Beauty at the Calgary Stampede “because it’s good for your confidence and it’s a lot of fun.”
The Miss Swimsuit USA International competition will be the biggest event Deacon has competed in.
