PAGEANT Circle

Miss Universe 1970 Marisol Malaret Contreras from Puerto Rico passed away at the age of 73 on Sunday. The former beauty queen turned television personality became the first Puerto Rican and Caribbean woman to win the Miss Universe pageant on July 11, 1970, at the Miami Beach Auditorium in Miami Beach, Florida. She was only 20 years old, an executive secretary in the Puerto Rico Telephone Company, when she was crowned by her predecessor Gloria Diaz, Miss Universe 1969 from the Philippines. Following her historic victory, she was honored with what was considered until then one of the biggest welcomings ever at San Juan. It was reported that around 50,000 people turned out to her homecoming. Marisol appeared on the covers of countless international and Puerto Rican magazines and took part in numerous advertising campaigns. The auburn-haired, blue-green-eyed beauty was married three times. Her first marriage was to former male model Butch James, the second was to musician Corky Stroman wit

Martinique returns to Miss International, Pauline Thimon appointed Miss International Martinique 2023 Pauline Thimon has been officially announced as Miss International Martinique 2023 and will go to Miss International 2023 pageant in Japan later this year. The 26-year-old beauty loves learning about other cultures and decided to pursue applied languages and international trade at university. She is currently working in customer service for an international software company. No stranger to pageantry, Pauline was named last year's Miss Intercontinental France and went on to participate in Miss Intercontinental 2022 competition in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt. "She will perfectly embody the values ​​of our committee at Miss International. We wish her to come back from this new adventure, proud of her journey and all her successes," Les Beautés de la Couronne organization wrote in a statement on social media. Martinique, an overseas French region in the Caribbean, has yet to win t

Miss Chiang Mai, Chonnikarn Supittayaporn, was crowned Miss Thailand 2023 on Sunday, March 19 at the Central Chaengwattana in Nonthaburi, Bangkok. The 24-year-old model and pharmacy graduate of Chiang Mai University succeeded last year's winner Manita Farmer and will now prepare to represent Thailand at Miss Global 2023 this November in Vietnam. Sakhon Nakhon's Marisa Phonthirat was named the first runner-up while Phatthalung's Arabella Sitanan Gregory finished as the second runner-up. Kanokporn Payungwong of Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya and Supansa Wattananusit of Amnat Charoen were the third and fourth runners-up, respectively. A total of 47 stunning contestants from various Thai provinces were selected to take part in the 54th Miss Thailand edition. This year's competition themed "The Ultimate Precious" was organized by TPN Global in cooperation with Tero Entertainment. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Miss Universe Thailand (@mi

Miss Universe Ukraine Viktoria Apanasenko was announced the winner of the 71st Miss Universe national costume which was determined by public votes. The Miss Universe Organization made the official announcement of the winning costume on Wednesday, March 15 via the Miss Universe official app. Viktoria paraded her "Warrior of Light" costume during the 71st Miss Universe national costume presentation last January in New Orleans, Louisiana. It consists of an archangel sword, a monolithic jumpsuit that serves like an armor covering her body, a vyshyvanka-styled dress, a headpiece, and angel wings. The beautiful masterpiece designed by Ukrainian costume designer Lesia Patoka took several months to complete under extreme conditions due to the armed conflicts in Ukraine. According to Viktoria, it is a symbol of her nation's fight against the darkness, like an archangel Michael with a sword protecting her country. Importantly, it represents the strength, courage, and determination

Following the arrival of the 29 contestants vying for Reina Hispanoamericana 2022, an official presentation took place on Monday, March 13 at the Radisson Hotel in Santa Cruz, Bolivia. Standouts were the representatives of Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Equatorial Guinea, Haiti, Mexico, Nicaragua, Peru, and the USA. Prior to the red carpet presentation, the contestants earlier received their official sashes with the names of the countries or territories they represent. The final competition will be held on Saturday, March 25 at the Salón Sirionó Fexpocruz in Santa Cruz de la Sierra. Mexico's Andrea Bazarte will crown her successor at the end of the event. In case you missed it, here's the full presentation: View this post on Instagram A post shared by Reina Hispanoamericana (@rhispanaoficial) Photo: David Condori / Reina Hispanoamericana RELATED POST: Reina Hispanoamericana 2022: Meet the 29 contestants

Reina Hispanoamericana 2022, the 31st edition of the Reina Hispanoamericana pageant, will take place on Saturday, March 25 at the Salón Sirionó Fexpocruz in Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia. The competition was supposed to be held last November but had to be postponed due to political and civil unrest in the host country. A total of 29 contestants from various countries and territories, of Spanish language or descent, are vying for the international title. Three new countries making their debut in the pageant include Germany, Equatorial Guinea, and Italy. Reina Hispanoamericana 2021 Andrea Bazarte of Mexico will pass the crown to her successor at the culmination of the upcoming event. Meet the contestants: ARGENTINA - Nadia Sommariva BOLIVIA - María Jesús Jimenez BRAZIL - Guilhermina Montarroyos CANADA - Yuly Pirona CHILE - Anita-María Rojas COLOMBIA - María Lucía Cuesta COSTA RICA - María Alejandra Acosta CUBA - Alyanni Trujillo DOMINICAN REPUBLIC - Lady León ECUADOR - Heath

Ashley Carrington edged out five other contestants to win Miss World Barbados 2023 on Saturday, March 11 at The Walled Garden Theatre, Barbados Museum & Historical Society in Bridgetown. The 23-year-old animal lover, model, and management student at the University of the West Indies, Cave Hill, will now prepare to represent Barbados at the 71st Miss World edition in India later this year. She succeeded Miss World Barbados 2019 Che Amor Greenidge who participated in the Miss World 2019 pageant held in London, United Kingdom. Rhenea Gaskin, Chloe Millar, Katiana Worrell, Cya Layne, and Junia Harris were the rest of the six finalists. The new Miss World Barbados also works in the medical field and volunteers regularly at a veterinary clinic. Her advice for her younger self: "Do what makes you happy and do not let anyone live their life through you. Love yourself first always." View this post on Instagram A post shared by Ashley Carrington (@ashley.d.carri

Malaysian actress and former beauty queen Michelle Yeoh bagged the Best Actress award at Oscars 2023 for her notable performance in the 2022 sci-fi/adventure/comedy film Everything Everywhere All at Once. Hosted by Jimmy Kimmel, the 95th Academy Awards aired on Monday, March 13, and was held at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles, California. Michelle made history by becoming the first person of Asian descent to win the Academy Award for Best Actress. She also won the same recognition at the Golden Globes for the same film last month. The 60-year-old played the role of Evelyn Quan Wang, an overwhelmed but optimistic laundromat owner who saved the universe. She beat Andrea Riseborough (To Leslie), Cate Blanchett (Tar), Michelle Williams (The Fabelmans), and Ana de Armas (Blonde). Before becoming an award-winning international actress, Michelle was crowned Miss Malaysia (Miss World Malaysia) in 1983 and went on to represent her country at the Miss World 1983 pageant which was held at the Ro

Miss Downtown Nashville, Regan Ringler, was crowned Miss Tennessee USA 2023 on Saturday, March 11 at the Austin Peay State University in Clarksville, Tennessee. The 25-year-old model originally from Clinton, Mississippi, bested over 40 other competitors to win the state title. She succeeds last year's winner, Emily Suttle, who placed in the Top 12 at Miss USA 2022. Rounding out the Top 5 finalists were Emma Conn (Nashville), Christell Foote (Historic Franklin), Madison Knust (Madison County), and Alexis Sanders (Mid-South). They were named first, second, third, and fourth runners-up, respectively. The rest of the Top 16 were Demi Patoris, Emma Hill, Christian Bevere, Tatum Sheppard, Kinsley Williams, Sabrina Pointe, Livi Self, Allyssa Weyant, Corrin Stellakis, Rosie Westerbeck, and Taylor Gipson. No stranger to pageantry, the new Miss Tennessee USA previously joined several times at Miss Mississippi Teen USA and Miss Mississippi USA pageants but unfortunately failed to clinch the t

Lars Pacheco was crowned Miss International Queen Philippines 2023 on Saturday, March 11 at Aliw Theater in Pasay City, Metro Manila. The Bulakeña beauty edged out 24 other competitors to clinch the beauty title on her second try. She succeeded last year's titleholder and the third Miss International Queen from the Philippines, Fuschia Anne Ravena. Michelle Bermudez of Caloocan City was named first runner-up while Barbie Alawi of Zamboanga City became the second runner-up. Anne Patricia Lorenzo of Manila and Tamira Yvone Willis of Negros Occidental were the third and fourth runners-up, respectively. No stranger to pageantry, the new Miss International Philippines previously joined Super Sireyna on GMA's "Eat Bulaga!" and then the inaugural Miss Q&A edition on ABS-CBN's "It's Showtime" in 2018. Lars will now prepare to achieve a back-to-back win as she represents her country in the upcoming Miss International Queen 2023 competition in Pattaya, Tha