The renewed version of the Miss Universe pageant took place on the night of this Saturday, January 14, and R‘Bonney Gabriel, representative of the United States, won the victory; Likewise, the national representative, Irma Miranda Valenzuela from Sonora, was eliminated when it was revealed that she was not among the first 16 selected semifinalists.
Held in New Orleans, in the United States, the contest began with a presentation of the 84 candidates for the crown, framed by a musical number that evoked the dynamics of Carnivalthe Mardi Gras that characterizes a happy city that hosted this contest “for women, intelligent and strong” -which also had an all-female jury, including the former Mexican Miss Universe Ximena Navarrete-, in the words of Jeannie Mai Jenkins, presenter of the night with Olivia Culpo.
After a series of interviews held before a deliberative committee, since the contestants have already been in New Orleans for a few daysthe 16 semifinalists of this 71st edition of Miss Universe were selected, all characterized by an average age greater than in other years, excellent command of the English language, some professionals and even dedicated to social work and activism in favor of women’s rights (also the recipients of the campaigns that are promoted against bullying and body criticism, by the organizers).
The next phase included the swimsuit parade, models by Jacqueline Aguilera that were accompanied by colorful capes that conveyed a message of what worries each candidate –socially–; likewise, the emphasis continued on how the event “is more than a contest, it is a platform” that projects the opinion of women who “seek to change the world, who try to make themselves heard,” said Olivia Culpo.
Minutes later, It was the turn of Anne Jakrajutatip to speak, the first woman (transgender) to own the contest, she made it clear that now “the times have changed” and that she decided “not to give up, I transformed pain into power” and the competition, sentence, “we will do it so that women feel good and not objectified”; Immediately afterwards, she presented the Leadership Award to Miss Thailand, Anna Suengam-iam, who attracted attention in recent days when it was learned that Her family is a garbage collector and her competition dress was made from scraps.
Once the parade in evening dress was carried out, the five finalists were chosen: the representatives of Venezuela, the United States, the Dominican Republic, Curaçao and Puerto Rico. Thus, the question section was carried out after a (random) selection of a member of the jury to question each contestant. Then the opportunity was taken to honor Cheslie Kryst, who represented the United States in Miss Universe 2019, but committed suicide last January, a victim of depression.
The three finalists (Venezuela, the Dominican Republic and the United States) starred in the last round of questions and that was essential to determine the winner. Of course, the musical number before announcing results was in charge of the Grammy winner, Yolanda Adams, who performed “I’m every woman”. Finally, the appointed hour arrived and the second runner-up position went to the Dominican Republic, the runner-up was Venezuela and the winner was Miss United States: R’Bonney Gabriel.
JM
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