PAGEANT Circle

Rachel Slawson, a 28-year-old Irish-American actress, keynote speaker, and model, has been officially appointed as Miss Grand Ireland 2023. The former Miss Utah USA and the first openly LGBTQ+ contestant at Miss USA, recently placed as the second runner-up at Miss Grand United States 2023 pageant in Chicago, Illinois. As a strong advocate for mental health and inclusivity, she is the founder of the "I Am Why Project" and the non-profit "Feelings Are Human" to create a positive impact in her community. The new Miss Grand Ireland will proudly represent the "Emerald Isle" at Miss Grand International 2023 in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam this October. She hopes to be the first LGBTQ+ winner of the competition to help further her cause across the world. In a recent post on social media, Rachel shared: "I take immense pride in my Irish heritage and nationality, with my mother bearing the Hennessy name, and my 24th great-grandfather Brian Boru, standing as the i

Bonaire, an island municipality of the Netherlands off Venezuela's coast in the southern Caribbean, is set to debut at this year's Miss Grand International pageant with newly announced Miss Grand Bonaire 2023 Ruby Pouchet. The 27-year-old nature conservationist was crowned Miss Bonaire 2022 at the Courtyard by Marriott Bonaire Dive Resort in Kralendijk last December. In her latest post on social media today, Ruby shared she is beyond honored to be the first-ever representative of Bonaire on the prestigious stage. "Join me as we make memories on this journey together. See you soon Vietnam," she added. The highly anticipated Miss Grand International 2023 will take place this coming October in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. Road to the 11th Miss Grand International: View this post on Instagram A post shared by Ruby Pouchet (@rubypaola) Photos: Miss Bonaire, Ruby Pouchet / Instagram

Uzbekistan, a Central Asian nation and former Soviet republic, is set to debut at the Miss Grand International pageant this year with the recently announced Miss Grand Uzbekistan 2023 Amaliya Shakirova. The 28-year-old beauty hailing from Tashkent and currently based in the Philippines was officially crowned on Sunday, September 3 by Miss Grand Uzbekistan national director Olinda Cho in a special ceremony held at Luxent Hotel in Quezon City. "Can't describe how blessed and happy I feel to have you all by my side. Can't wait to share my [Miss Grand International] journey with you all. Thank you for your love and support," shared the professional model and ocean advocate on social media. Amaliya is no stranger to pageantry as she has previously joined Miss CosmoWorld 2022 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, and placed first runner-up. She will now prepare to represent Uzbekistan at Miss Grand International 2023 to be held in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam this October. Road to the

The schedule of events and activities for Miss Grand International 2023 has been officially announced by Miss Grand International Organization on Monday, September 4. Around 70 contestants from around the world are expected to arrive on October 3 and will be checking in to Grand K Hotel Suites in Hanoi, Vietnam. More than three weeks of jam-packed pre-pageant activities await them including photoshoots, a welcome gala dinner, sightseeing tours, rehearsals, preliminary events, and more. For the first time, the organization introduces the Grand Voice Award to showcase beauties with incredible singing voice talent. An audition will happen on October 8, round two on October 17, and the final is set for October 22. The highly-anticipated annual swimsuit competition will be on October 12 in Da Nang while the national costume competition on October 20, the preliminary competition on October 22, and the grand coronation show on October 25 will take place at the Phú Thọ Indoor Stadium in Ho Chi

Eugénia das Neves was crowned Miss Grand Angola 2023 in a national competition held on Saturday, September 2 at the Epic Sana Hotel in Luanda. The 24-year-old mechanical engineering graduate from Luanda is currently working as an administrative assistant. She succeeds last year's titleholder Teresa Sara and will represent Angola at Miss Grand International 2023 in Vietnam this October. Jacira Saiombo and Airania Dias were the first and second runners-up, respectively, while Roberta Capule Paulo and Angélica Varela rounded out the Top 5 finalists. Ten contestants took part in the inaugural edition of the Miss Grand Angola pageant. The event was hosted by Mister Angola 2017 Bráulio Anderson and Miss Angola 2014 Whitney Shikongo. Meet the new Miss Grand Angola: View this post on Instagram A post shared by MISS GRAND ANGOLA OFFICIAL (@missgrandangola) Photos: Miss Grand Angola / Instagram

María Fernanda Beltrán Figueroa was crowned Miss Grand Mexico 2023 in a glittering national competition held on Wednesday, August 30 at Auditorio MIA in Culiacán, Sinaloa. The 23-year-old professional model representing Sinaloa is a graduate of marketing and communication, and founder of Marbe Fundacion, a nonprofit foundation whose main goal is to help others in dire need. Aarlin Andrea Bustamante of the Mexican community of the USA and Frida Reynoso of Coahuila were the first and second runners-up, respectively, while Priscila Franco Jalisco and Ingrid Lucero of Puebla were the rest of the finalists. The new Miss Grand Mexico succeeds last year's titleholder Laysha Salazar, who placed in the Top 20 at Miss Grand International 2022 in Indonesia. She will now prepare to represent Mexico at Miss Grand International 2023 in Vietnam this October. Road to the 11th Miss Grand International: View this post on Instagram A post shared by Juan Angel Uriarte (@juanangelfo

Natalia Carolina Cometto was officially proclaimed as Miss Grand Argentina 2023 on Saturday, August 26 by the new national franchise holder Sambrizzi Producción. The 26-year-old model and nutritionist will now prepare to represent Argentina at Miss Grand International 2023 to be held in Vietnam this October. No stranger to pageantry, Natalia previously held the title Miss Elite Argentina and participated in Miss Elite 2023 in Egypt where she placed in the Top 10. Meet the new Miss Grand Argentina: View this post on Instagram A post shared by Natalia Carolina Cometto (@nataliacometto) Photos: Miss Grand Argentina, Natalia Carolina Cometto / Instagram

Le Hoang Phuong was crowned Miss Grand Vietnam 2023 in a national competition held on Sunday, August 27 at the Phu Tho Indoor Sport Stadium in Ho Chi Minh City. The 28-year-old fashion model and architecture graduate from Khanh Hoa province bested over 40 other contestants to win the national title. She succeeds last year's winner Doan Thien An and will now prepare to compete in the Miss Grand International 2023 pageant to be held in her country this October. Bui Khanh Linh was named first runner-up while Truong Qui Minh Nhan, Le Thi Hong Hanh, and Dang Hoang Tam Nhu were the second, third, and fourth runners-up, respectively. Reigning Miss Grand International Isabella Menin from Brazil graced the glittering event as a special guest with MGI executives Nawat Itsaragrisil and Teresa Chaivisut. No stranger to pageantry, the new Miss Grand Vietnam is a former contestant at Miss Universe Vietnam. She placed in the Top 5 in 2022 and bagged the Best in Swimsuit and Best Face in 2019.

Former Miss Supranational USA Sofia Acosta was crowned Miss Grand Cuba in a national competition on Sunday, August 20 held at Marriott Tampa Westshore. The 26-year-old Cuba-born model residing in Miami will now prepare to represent Cuba at Miss Grand International 2023 in Vietnam this coming October. Sofia is currently a construction management student at Florida International University while working as an assistant project manager for Miami-Dade County. With her advocacy on education, she volunteers with a number of community organizations including Kiwanis of Little Havana, Big Brothers and Sisters, and Global Empowerment Mission No stranger to pageantry, the new Miss Grand Cuba previously held the title Miss Supranational USA and went on to participate in Miss Supranational 2022 held in Nowy Sącz, Poland. In a post on social media after winning her new title, she wrote: "Today, in front of the world, I am Cuba with immense pride. I represent modern-day Cuba, which persists tir

Denisse Vivienne Andor has been officially announced as Miss Grand Romania 2023 and will compete in Miss Grand International 2023 in Vietnam this October. The 28-year-old tourism graduate with master's degrees in English studies and translation previously joined Miss Grand Spain 2023 where she represent Almería and placed third runner-up. In 2018, she was named Miss Earth Romania and went to participate in Miss Earth 2018 pageant held in the Philippines where she placed in the Top 18. The new Miss Grand Romania is described as someone ambitious, hard-working, competitive, and persevering woman. Her passions include dancing, fashion, and sports. Denisse moved to Spain at age 16 and enjoyed learning about other cultures. Today, she speaks five languages — Spanish, English, French, some German, and of course Romanian. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Denisse Andor (@denissevivienne) Photos: Miss Grand International, Christian Sánchez / X Graphy

Phoem Sreyno bested 24 other competitors to be crowned Miss Grand Cambodia 2023 on Saturday, August 19 at Koh Pich Theater in Phnom Penh. The 25-year-old beauty from the Cambodian capital city will now prepare to represent her country at Miss Grand Internationa 2023 to be held in Vietnam this October. Anna Koy of Kratié was named first runner-up while Leakena In of Pailin, Sreynit Sou of Kampong Thom, and Men Nong Nith of Preah Sihanouk were the second, third, and fourth runners-up, respectively. Reigning Grand International Isabella Menin from Brazil graced the event as a special guest. She was accompanied by Teresa Chaivisut, vice president of the MGI organization. The new Miss Grand Cambodia succeeds last year's winner Pich Votey Saravody who placed in the Top 10 and was declared fifth runner-up at Miss Grand International 2022 held in Indonesia. View this post on Instagram A post shared by 𝗠𝗶𝘀𝘀 𝗚𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗖𝗮𝗺𝗯𝗼𝗱𝗶𝗮 (@missgrandcambodiaofficial) Ph