Muslim Beauty queen defies stereotypes,to wear hijab at finale

LONDON: A 29-year-old student set to become the first to walk down the Miss England catwalk in a hijab.

Sara Iftekhar, who studies law at the University of Huddersfield, is in the running to become Miss England – hoping to win the crown at Kelham Hall, Nottinghamshire, next week.

Iftekhar has said she can’t even comprehend how ‘amazing’ it is to have come this far in the competition.

Back in July, she shared a selfie with a trophy on her Instagram account, writing: “Wowwwwwww!!!! I can’t even comprehend how amazing it felt for my name to be announced as a finalist in the Miss England Finals 2018! Alhamdullilah.

“It was an incredible experience and something which I will never be able to forget. The opportunities which I have received with being a finalist in Miss England are opportunities which I would never have thought of and will forever be grateful for.”

She added on Instagram: “My Miss England journey has been so so amazing and an experience which I never thought I would be part of. I still feel honored to be one of the amazing girls in the top 50 chosen out of 22,000 women. I just can’t wait to see where this journey takes me.”

Iftekhar is also using the publicity she’s attracted from the competition to help raise money for Beauty with a Purpose, a charity that helps unprivileged children around the globe – raising money for everything from Cleft Palate Teams in South America, Sri Lanka, and Russia through to displaced children in Vietnam and those affected by natural disasters.

Writing on her GoFundMe page she said: “Beauty with a Purpose has been raising money for the past 46 years. It helps local and international organizations in order to help unprivileged children around the world. They have raised money for the Cleft Palate Teams in South America, Sri Lanka, and Russia, alongside carrying out fundraising tours in order to support the abandoned and neglected children in Vietnam.

“They have also worked alongside Nelson Mandela and Jackie Chan in order to increase the financial aid of those affected by the Asian tsunami.

“I participated in Miss 2018 in order to show that beauty doesn’t have a definition, everyone is beautiful in their own ways, regardless of their weight, race, color or shape.”