SELINA-NICOLE Lavictoire is toasting her success on being named Miss Worcestershire 2006 after a tense night at Worcester Racecourse.

The St John's beauty held her nerve to impress the judges after giving a live interview in front of 300 people on why she should be crowned winner.

"I'm completely overwhelmed, stunned and very proud," said the 20-year-old. "When the second and third places were called out I thought I hadn't won. I'm speechless, to be honest."

In the end it was a tight contest - with Gemma Normoyle, 22, from Warndon Villages, a close second and 21-year old Laura Collins from Malvern taking third.

Channel 4 presenter Mike Cattermole questioned all 10 finalists live on stage, asking each why they deserved to be Miss Worcestershire before the judges took a 15-minute break to consider the verdict.

Last year's winner Rachel Davies, 22, who was on the judging panel, said: "I think it was a nice, really relaxed competition.

"Selina is a lovely girl and deserved to win - she's got that Miss Worcestershire look."

Organiser Phil Carey said: "It was a really successful night and I think the right choice was made.

"When the results were read it was well received by the crowd. The girls all made a stunning effort.

"Selina is a local girl, really pretty and the great thing is that it did come as a surprise to her."

Whilst Selina will now get the chance to compete in Miss England in July in Leicester, the runner-up wished her all the best.

Gemma Normoyle, who missed out by a whisker, said: "I was really pleased to come second.

"I wish all the other girls the best, and the winner. I'm not sure if I'll be back next year but it's a possibility."

We were looking for a girl with real talent

JUDGING an event like Miss Worcestershire may be a privilege for a 20-something bachelor like myself, but it also throws up all kind of conundrums.

I want to make sure I make the right choice, but how will my fellow judges cast their votes? Would we end up arguing until Sunday morning arrives?

The task was simple - to pick out the best girl Worcestershire had to offer and make her Miss Worcestershire 2006.

The day went remarkably smoothly, considering I had never crossed paths with the other two judges before, and we had no criteria beforehand of how we were supposed to pick a winner.

We ended up drawing up a score sheet for each girl and decided we would mark them on a strict set of different qualities.

It was not just about looks - it was about bringing the full package to the stage and convincing us the winner really had the right talent to become a potential Miss England.

By the end of the contest, we actually had four potential winners in mind and had a tricky time narrowing it down to the final three girls. Myself, former Miss Worcestershire Rachel Davies and Channel 4's Mike Cattermole spent around 15 minutes throwing arguments back and forth before placing Laura Collins a close third.

My score sheet actually matched point-for-point between Gemma Normoyle and the winner Selina, placing me in an interesting dilemma as I had it down as a draw.

There had to be a winner, so call it judge's discretion if you like - Selina was our pick because we were confident she had it all.