About 15,000 women nationwide applied to become the next Miss Germany, according to the competition's organizers. 

The 10 finalists were revealed on Tuesday, and one of them is making headlines: 19-year-old Saskia von Bargen, a trans woman who lives with her parents and three younger sisters in the village of Friedrichsfehn, Lower Saxony.

 "The fact that I'm in the final as a trans woman means a great deal to me," she told DW, adding that it shows that our society is changing — "and that trans women are also seen as women."

Von Bargen knew from the age of 5 that she was a girl. She preferred playing with girls and wearing dresses. "Already early on my parents realized that this was not just a phase," says the 19-year-old, who praises her parents for being supportive from the start. At school, however, things were not always easy; she wore boys' clothes to avoid bullying.

At age 11, von Bargen started taking puberty blockers, followed by feminizing hormone therapy two years later. This is also when she came out at school, which made life easier for her and she started feeling more accepted. When von Bargen was of age, she underwent gender surgery. Saskia is her chosen name.

Meanwhile, she has found a way to deal with hate speech. "I react to negative comments by not reading them at all. I don't offer them a platform, but block and delete them," the 19-year-old told DW.

Miss Germany revamps its image

Winning a beauty pageant used to be associated with having good looks and the ability to walk like a runway model.

But Miss Germany Studios, the company that organizes the national pageant, has radically changed the judging criteria in an attempt to revamp the contest's image.

Since 2019, candidates no longer prance on the catwalk in a bikini. Height and weight are also no longer important. In fact, appearances play absolutely no role, according to Jil Andert from Miss Germany Studios. The women rather have to demonstrate strong personality skills and "are meant to be a source of inspiration," Andert told German press agency dpa.

In 2022, activist, entrepreneur and actress Domitila Barros was elected, and is currently still reigning, Miss Germany — as the first woman of color. Barros grew up in a Brazilian favela, where she taught street children to read and write. Today, she is an advocate for sustainability, environmental protection and social justice.

But sociologist Nina Degele from the Freiburg University is left unimpressed by the competition's makeover and considers the Miss Germany format outdated. In order to be relevant, she believes "the format would have to be abolished and replaced by something completely different."

The trans ambassador

Von Bargen said the Miss Germany pageant was the "perfect platform" for her to tell her story. A retail trainee in a fashion store, von Bargen wants to educate people about what it's like to be a trans woman. She talks openly about things that went wrong in her first surgery. In total, she underwent 12 surgical procedures. Despite the hardship, she doesn't regret it.

She applied to the competition so she could promote awareness of transgender issues. "For the future, I wish that trans identity and LGBTQ education are not taboo topics," she says, arguing that all questions need to be answered, everyone needs to understand. Von Bargen sees herself as an ambassador for the cause. If she wins, she will have €25,000 ($26,500) at her disposal.

Not the first trans woman to make it to the finals

Von Bargen is not the first trans woman to come so far in a Miss Germany pageant. Last year, Gadou, a trans woman from Hannover, also from Lower Saxony, made it to the finals.

But von Bargen is hoping to be the first trans woman to win. The finals will take place on Saturday at the Europa-Park in Rust, in southwestern Germany.

Other finalists include an energy consultant who wants to promote women in a male-dominated field and a midwife who aspires to start her own birth center.

The Miss Germany competition, which was held for the first time in 1927 but forbidden by the Nazis, is not to be confused with Miss Universe Germany, where an official candidate for the Miss Universe pageant is selected.

sl/eg (dpa)

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