African student wins Mr Siberia 2025 with French rap performance
A young man from Africa won the Mr Siberia 2025 contest in Barnaul, Russia.
20-year-old Trezor Ligan from Benin never expected to become popular in a small Siberian city. The young man flew to Barnaul to study programming at the Altai State Polytechnic University, and in his free time he conquered the runway, winning the title of Mr Siberia — 2025.
Read about the challenges he faced upon arriving in Russia, why he wanted to return home, and why he decided to showcase himself on the runway in the article by NGS22.RU.
«Mom asked me to wear a hat»
Trezor Ligan arrived in the Altai region just over a year ago — as soon as he finished school, a state program gave him the opportunity to study in Russia. He didn«t refuse this chance, despite all his fears, and decided to study programming in Barnaul:
— I like new technologies and everything related to them. That«s probably why I decided to try myself in this direction, — the foreigner reflects.
The first few months in Russia were difficult for Trezor because even simple everyday situations, like going to the store, required knowledge of Russian, and it was not easy to master:
— I would come to the store and realize I didn«t know what to say, even though I needed the most ordinary things. Russian in general was hard to learn, especially the stress and cases, since the main language in Benin is French. At the preparatory faculty we had a good teacher who helped a lot: we read a lot, retold, learned new words, and communicated with those who have been living in Russia for several years.
Because of the language difficulties, the guy thought about returning home, but his mother convinced him to stay.
The student considered returning home but was persuaded to stay by his mother«s support.
— She supported me a lot. She said that if other guys from Africa could learn Russian, then I probably could too. She was worried that it«s cold here, so every day she told me to wear a hat, — the guy smiles.
Initially, the harsh Siberian climate seemed unbearably cold to him — in Benin the air temperature never dropped below +15°C (59°F), so −1°C (30°F) in Barnaul scared Trezor, but after a month the guy got used to it and realized that the main thing is indeed to dress warmly.
What surprised the foreigner the most was how people reacted to him when he first arrived in Barnaul. According to Trezor, he often noticed the stares of passersby and didn«t understand why everyone was looking at him:
— I was in shock, it was impossible to walk the streets, but then I was explained that in Russia it happens because many have never seen black skin, so they are surprised. Once someone even came up and asked if they could take a photo with me. Why with me? What for? In my country no one paid attention to me.
«Difficult and nerve-racking»
In Barnaul, Trezor was also noticed by Tatyana Zhilina«s modeling agency, whose representatives invited him to try modeling. At first he was even a little scared — he didn»t believe that a real person was writing to him and that the agency actually existed. He asked his friends for advice, then turned to the internet and realized he could give it a try:
— When I came to the casting — I saw so many handsome men, even more handsome than me, but I decided to try anyway, to see how I would manage.
The preparation for the competition itself took 2 months — during this time the young men managed to prepare creative performances, learned to walk the runway and show their best sides, had photoshoots and prepared competition stories about themselves:
— The last one turned out to be the most difficult for me. I was standing alone, in front of me were about a hundred Russian people. How could I speak their language so that they all understood me? It was difficult and nerve-racking.
To show his creative side, Trezor went on stage with a friend and performed a rap in French, which finally convinced the jury that the guy deserved the title of Mr Siberia — 2025:
He performed a French rap number that helped win the competition.
— After the final, I sent my mom the pictures, she was shocked but very happy. All of Siberia — and I am the winner. I don«t know yet if I will continue with this. Maybe my victory is just a miracle? — Mr Siberia reflects.
In his free time, Trezor enjoys music and reading, and does not miss the opportunity to chat with friends. By the way, one of his favorite places in Barnaul is Nagorny Park, which offers a panoramic view of the city that once became home to the native African for a time.
— I really like the people in Barnaul, they all seem kind, and I managed to find many friends — both from Russia itself and from Africa, — Trezor concluded.
