America's Next Top Model Cycle 13: Why an Awkward Girl Deserved to Win

America's Next Top Model, or ANTM for short, has been going strong for 13 seasons now. The contestants of ANTM are judged by supermodel and executive producer Tyra Banks, runway coach Ms. Jay Alexander and fashion photographer Nigel Barker. The winner of the competition receives a modeling contract, a $100,000 contract with CoverGirl cosmetics, and a magazine spread. In all the seasons I have watched, I have never been able to correctly guess the winner from the first episode. That all changed for Cycle 13.

America's Next Top Model Cycle 13 is unique because it is the first-ever season for petite models. To qualify for the competition, models could be no taller than 5'7. From the first episode, Nicole Fox, 18, of Louisville, Colorado, looked to be the winner. Something about her hair and face just screamed couture, which is a rare look that is always hot in Europe. There was one "problem" though: Nicole was extremely awkward and at times seemed to lack social skills altogether. Watching her dance for a challenge literally made me cover my eyes, and her runway walk needed some definite fine-tuning. She was quickly categorized as the shy, awkward girl. As time went on, Nicole gradually became more and more outgoing and let her quirky personality shine through.

Though it seemed clear to me that looks-wise Nicole had the competition in the bag, I wondered if her awkwardness would work in her favor or come back to bite her during the all-important CoverGirl commercial at the end. Would Nicole be able to be a CoverGirl spokesmodel? The answer is clearly yes: A CoverGirl should be relatable, natural, and unique. Nicole definitely brings that to the table.

In the words of Nicole after her victory, "I'm a dork and I'm America's Next Top Model!" Finally, the judges get it right by declaring a winner that has both the personality and the looks to represent America. After all, there are a million dorks, like myself, who hope that the fashion industry will recognize that women who are "awkward" are beautiful in their own right and a lot more relatable as a CoverGirl spokesmodel than models who are perhaps too "perfect".