Simply Gina
AT 18, Gina Hargitay (GH), has joined the long line of beauties to represent Jamaica on the Miss World stage.
In September, Hargitay, after spending a month in Bali, Indonesia, walked away with the Miss Word Caribbean crown after placing seventh.
teenAGE met with this humble beauty in the lobby of the Terra Nova All-Suites Hotel in Kingston to discuss her reign so far, and her plans for the future.
teenAGE: We hear you’ve been travelling a lot.
GH: Yes, I recently returned from London (a close friend passed and I attended the funeral). But before that I spoke at the CONCACAF (Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football) Summit in The Cayman Islands. I did an address on the importance of football in the life of underprivileged youths. It went over well, I think. I got good reviews for Jeff Webb, president of CONCACAF and FIFA president Sepp Blatter.
teenAGE: Are there any other travel plans this year?
GH: Yes, I will be going to Washington, DC, to present at the Institute of Caribbean Studies’ 20th Annual Caribbean Heritage Awards.
teenAGE: Other official duties?
GH: Courtesy calls with Prime Minister Portia Simpson Miller and other ministers of government. I will also be doing charity work, including painting an interactive mural for STEP, so even if the children can’t see it they can feel it. I hope that I can start that as soon as possible.
teenAGE: What will be your platform?
GH: I will focus a lot on my four main charities all focused on underprivilieged and disabled children. St Patrick’s Foundation; STEP (School for Therapy Education and Parenting of Children with Multiple Disabilities); McCam Child Development Centre (which is with children with mental challenges such as autism and down syndrome); and School for the Deaf — I’m learning sign language so I can communicate with the chilren.
teenAGE: What are you hoping to accomplish through these charities?
GH: Definitely raising money for them. But not only raising money, but awareness, because this is where a lot of the problems start. When people don’t know what another has to deal with it is difficult to make them care.
teenAGE: How has the crown of Miss Jamaica World changed you?
GH: It definitely improved my confidence. I am not shy, just cautious. I prefer to listen than speak, so this experience has taught me to be more expressive and open. It has taught me also the power of the crown, the influence it carries and the responsibility. It means that everything I say is positive, and I really want to stress that positivity during my reign.
Family Life
teenAGE: Talk to us about your life before Miss Jamaica World.
GH: Well, I was born in Jamaica, grew up Ocho Rios. But my father had some business opportunity in London and my family moved to London in 2002. My base formation, my personality started in Jamaica and I can’t live more than six months without coming back to Jamaica.
teenAGE: Is that why you entered Miss Jamaica World?
GH: Being very rooted in Jamaica, I had always deceided that I’d come back for some reason. And that reason really arose in the last two years when I decided that I wanted to enter Miss Jamaica. I returned to Jamaica the day after A Levels finished for eliminations.
teenAGE: Do you have any siblings?
GH: I am the youngest of four. I have two older brothers Steven (36) Jamar, who just turned 27 and an older sister Jovi who just turned 21.
Miss World
teenAGE: What was the Miss World experience like?
GH: It was intense and thrilling. Being only 18, and away from family from for a month helped me to mature a lot. Nothing else is quite like it.
teenAGE: Did the competition meet your expectations?
GH: A lot of people think the competition is about looking pretty all the time, but it is really about what it took to get us there. A lot of the ladies are there to further their charities, their country that they want to uplift, or are really invested in the ‘beauty with a purpose’ message.
teenAGE: What were the reactions from the other queens to you?
GH: Jamaica has a great legacy of putting for strong candidates for both Miss World and Miss Universe, so I think that people are always interested in who Miss Jamaica is this year. A lot of people were very welcoming and nice. They want you to chat some patios, or ask if you’ve met Usain Bolt or Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce yet. It was good because so many people were willing to welcome you already.
teenAGE: Describe the day of the competition?
GH: A lot of rehearsals take place in the space for the competition, so the final night felt a bit like a rehearsal. The ladies were saying ‘can you believe this is it?’ Everyone was calm and ready to celebrate, whether we won or lost.
teenAGE: And then you placed in the Top 10. What was the feeling then?
GH: It was amazing, after a month of sleeplessness, I was really honoured to have made it that far.
teenAGE: Do you think that you continued Jamaica’s legacy in the Miss World franchise?
GH: I hope I do. I know that I did my best, and that’s the most I could have hoped for.
teenAGE: What would you say to young girls who want to be like you someday?
GH: I would say that they can. It has nothing to do with the person. I have been myself throughout all of this, never changed to fit the mould. It is about dedication, focussing on what you have to do for that period. Anyone who is willing to do the hard work, it is possible for them.
The Future
teenAGE: What were the subjects you sat in GCE A Levels?
GH: I sat German, history and chemistry.
teenAGE: Are you planning on returning to the school after your reign?
GH: Yes, most likely to do history and politics. I have been accepted by my top choicesâ Westminister is one of them. But I now have scholarships to UCC (University College of the Caribbean and University of London, so I am looking at my options of studying in Jamaica.
teenAGE: What career are you hoping to pursue?
GH: Not sure yet, but my father is in business consultancy and crisis management, so I would like to move into his company when I get older.