In 1969, Linda Collett became the first contestant to win the Miss SA title the year after she had placed 2nd. Another two contestants, Sandy McCormack (1986) and Amy Kleinhans (1992), would improve their placements at Miss SA from 2nd to 1st in consecutive years.What does set Linda apart, however, is the fact that she was only 18 when she won the Miss SA title, having placed 2nd when she was a 17-year-old high school student. Back then, the contest was open to 17-year-olds. The minimum entry age for Miss SA only changed to 18 sometime in the 80's.
Linda went on to place 6th at the Miss World pageant in London.