Olivia wins The Face Australia

19 year old Olivia Donaldson has won FOX8’s model quest The Face Australia.

Donaldson, mentored by Cheyenne Tozzi, defeated her team-mate Yaya Deng, and Naomi Campbell’s protege Sarah Tilleke.

The Perth-based beauty becomes the face of Fresh Effects skin range by Olay.

“I can’t breathe. Oh my God, this has just been so amazing,” she said.

“The transformation from when I first came in… Cheyenne has done so much for me. The name ‘mentor’ doesn’t even come close to describing how much she means to me. The same for Naomi and Nicole.”

The finale comprised a glam runway featuring a collection by guest designer, Zac Posen, and watched on by Olay marketing manager, Lauren Young.

Young said when announcing her winner, “She is fun. She has amazing skin. She is confident. And she is incredibly genuine. The girl I’ve chosen to be the face of Fresh Effects by Olay is Olivia.”

But the series was not without its fire, with Campbell constantly crossing swords with fellow mentor Nicole Trunfio from the first episode. Unsurprisingly, Trunfio’s team was eliminated by episode 5.

The Face Australia didn’t seem to attract the ratings nor the media coverage usually pulled by Australia’s Next Top Model, and was frequently averaging under 50,000 in its premiere, overnight broadcast. When a network doesn’t send a Press Release immediately following a Grand Final (or previously under embargo) it’s generally pretty telling.

However, ANTM is set to return as Foxtel’s most enduring local entertainment brand.

Update: Foxtel has since supplied a press release which reads in part:

Olivia will now become the face of Fresh Effects by Olay – a new collection designed for younger skin by the world’s number one skincare brand, Olay. Earning a real contract as the brand ambassador for Fresh Effects by Olay, Olivia will launch the product to the Australian market and front a national advertising campaign.

“Being crowned the winner of THE FACE AUSTRALIA and becoming the face of Fresh Effects by Olay has definitely changed my life forever. Words cannot describe how excited I am to be an ambassador for Olay. It’s such an amazing honour to be representing an iconic, global brand that helps women to be their most beautiful, and is such a huge step in my career,” said Olivia.

Lauren Young, Olay Australia Brand Manager, said, “We are so excited to welcome Olivia to the Olay family as the face of Fresh Effects, our new collection designed to give girls skin so fresh it needs #nofilter. All the girls in the final five are amazing models so it was a very tough decision, but Olivia stood out; she has beautiful, fresh skin, a great attitude and confident personality. We can’t wait to start work with her.”