This Women's Magazine Chose a Burn Victim to Be the Cover Model for Their Inspirational New Issue

Turia Pitt, a burn victim and inspirational speaker, says she feels "very humbled" to be on the cover

By Jenna Mullins Jun 25, 2014 7:06 PMTags
E! Placeholder Image

We've all grown accustomed to most women's magazines featuring Hollywood stars promoting their latest projects. There they are, smiling on the cover, talking about love and balancing acting and family and you can even get all their workout secrets! (Hint: most of them will say to just "mix up your workout and do something fun!")

So when The Australian Women's Weekly released their cover photo for a special July issue, we were prepared for yet another celeb gracing the cover, but what we got was a wonderful surprise.

The woman on the cover is 26-year-old Turia Pitt, a burn victim and an inspirational speaker. She is being honored in the upcoming issue of Australian Women's Weekly for her amazing story of survival, and we are absolutely in love with the fact that they chose her as their cover girl. 

"When Turia was photographed as part of our Women of the Future judging panel among a group of similarly impressive Australian women, it was clear from the moment she sat in front of the camera that the July cover had to belong to her," editor-in-chief Helen McCabe said about putting Turia on the cover. "Any attempt to describe the magic and beauty of Turia seems to get lost in platitudes or clichés. Yet I have never met a more remarkable person."

Three years ago, Turia (pictured above with boyfriend Michael Hoskin) was caught in a brushfire while she was running an ultra-marathon in Western Australia. She suffered burns on 64 percent of her body and doctors gave her a very slim chance of survival. But Turia overcame her tragedy and defied expectations with her recovery.

Since then, the mining engineer (who is currently studying for her masters degree) has biked from Sydney to Uluru, swam a 20 kilometer race (over 12 miles) and walked the Great Wall of China, all to raise funds for Interplast, a reconstructive surgery charity.

Basically, Turia is a truly incredible human being.

"Being on the cover of The Australian Women's Weekly is a huge honor. I feel very humbled," Turia said. "For me, it sends the message that confidence equals beauty. There are a lot of women out there who are so beautiful but don't have the confidence, and that's what gets you over the line."

Bravo, Australian Women's Weekly, for putting such an amazing, inspirational woman on your cover. For more information on Turia and her message, you can follow her on Twitter.

(H/T Buzzfeed)