Eight young women will compete for a Miss Manitoba crown this week, but they won't be judged on how good they look strutting down a catwalk in a bathing suit or gown.

To make that point clear, organizers have recruited a blind man to judge the pageant on Thursday evening in Winkler, Man.

Clint Castle, a Winnipeg resident who is on the board of the Canadian National Institute for the Blind, told CBC News on Tuesday that he plans to examine traits other than beauty.

Castle said he will judge "the other qualities that are important in any human being, and certainly in these young women — character, intellect, poise, public speaking, creative expression — all of those kinds of things that will really sustain these young women as they move through life.

"Appearance, by itself, does not seem nearly adequate to succeed over the next 40, 50 or 60 years."

Event an offshoot of Winkler contest

This year will mark the third Miss Manitoba pageant, which originated from the annual Miss Winkler contest. It is sponsored mainly by Winkler-based businesses and organizations, including the City of Winkler.

The current Miss Manitoba, Renee Peters, represented Manitoba in July at the Miss United Nation Pageant in Los Angeles.

In Thursday's event, contestants, aged 17 to 21, will compete by giving speeches, answering interview questions, and writing tests that probe their knowledge of events in Manitoba and the world.

Castle said he will be keeping his ears open for enthusiasm and passion in the contestants' voices.

Castle, also a past chair of the CNIB's Manitoba board, said it will be the first time he has judged a beauty pageant.

Not anti-beauty pageant, organizers say

Miss Manitoba organizers said they learned of him through his involvement with the CNIB.

Shirley Janzen, the event's organizer, said it is not meant to be an anti-beauty pageant.

'In a pageant setting, where we're choosing a representative for a city or for a province, I don't understand why we would need to judge them in a bathing suit.' -Shirley Janzen, organizer of a Miss Manitoba event

"In fact, we encourage beauty, and I think it's really important for young women to look after themselves ... and in aspects of life, to be as beautiful as they possibly can be," she said.

"But I think in a pageant setting, where we're choosing a representative for a city or for a province, I don't understand why we would need to judge them in a bathing suit."

The new winner will be crowned on Thursday evening, during the mainstage festivities at the Winkler Harvest Festival.