Miss Universe 2018


Miss Universe 2018, the 67th Miss Universe pageant, was held on 17 December 2018 at IMPACT Arena, Muang Thong Thani in Nonthaburi Province, north of Bangkok, Thailand. Demi-Leigh Nel-Peters of South Africa crowned her successor Catriona Gray of the Philippines at the end of the event. This is the fourth time that the Philippines has won Miss Universe after winning in 2015.
The show was hosted by comedian Steve Harvey and supermodel Ashley Graham, while television personality Carson Kressley and runway coach Lu Sierra provided commentary and analysis throughout the event. American singer-songwriter Ne-Yo performed during the competition.
Contestants from 94 countries and territories participated in this year's pageant, surpassing the previous record of 92 contestants in 2017 and marking the biggest turnout to date for Miss Universe as of. Ángela Ponce of Spain became the first openly transgender contestant to compete for the Miss Universe title.

Background

Location

The Miss Universe Organization was in talks to host the Miss Universe 2018 competition in China. Negotiations collapsed after the Chinese refused to broadcast the pageant live, due to the large time difference between China and the United States. Afterwards, the MUO opened negotiations with the Philippines, after they had previously hosted 2016.
In April 2018, then-Secretary of Tourism Wanda Tulfo Teo spoke with President of the Philippines Rodrigo Duterte regarding the possibility of hosting the pageant in Boracay in November 2018, which by then will be newly rehabilitated after being closed to tourists for six months. On 6 May, Tulfo-Teo announced that the Philippines had a "90% chance" of hosting the pageant and also disclosed that the tourism department would be looking for sponsors, since the LCS Holdings Inc. of Chavit Singson, the major sponsor of the Miss Universe 2016 had declined financing the 2018 pageant. On 18 May 2018, Tulfo's successor Bernadette Romulo-Puyat announced that the country dropped the hosting bid due to budget constraints and other concerns. Romulo-Puyat also pointed out that the Philippines had hosted the pageant recently, and had no reason to do so again so soon.
On 31 July 2018 it was announced by MUO President Paula Shugart, in a live press conference at Bangkok Art and Culture Centre, that the 2018 pageant would be held in Bangkok, Thailand on 17 December. The city has hosted the Miss Universe pageant twice, in 1992 and 2005. Current Miss Universe Demi-Leigh Nel-Peters, along with two former Miss Universes Apasra Hongsakula and Natalie Glebova, participated in the announcement.

Selection of participants

Delegates representing 94 countries and territories were selected to compete in the pageant; six of these delegates were appointed to their titles after an audition process or other internal selection, three were appointed as replacements after the original titleholder was unable to compete because of commitments to Miss World 2018 and had placed as runners-up in the national pageant, and the remainder were selected as the winners of national pageants. However, reports have been unclear regarding whether Begimay Karybekova of Kyrgyzstan won a national title or was appointed to her title after an internal selection. The 2018 edition saw the debuts of Armenia, Kyrgyzstan, and Mongolia, while Belize, Denmark, Greece, Hungary, Kenya, Kosovo, and Switzerland returned to the competition; Greece had not competed since 2015, while the others had not competed since 2016. Austria, Ethiopia, Iraq, Romania, Slovenia, and Tanzania all withdrew from the competition after their franchise owners lost their Miss Universe licenses, or a national pageant was simply not held for another reason. Guyana was disqualified from participating by the Miss Universe Organization due to controversy regarding "nasty emails" and "death threats" sent to the organization over a dispute regarding their delegate in 2017, while Trinidad and Tobago also withdrew after they had announced no pageant would be held, despite Martrecia Alleyne having been crowned Miss Universe Trinidad and Tobago 2018 at their 2017 national pageant. Due to visa and transportation issues, Marie Esther Bangura of Sierra Leone arrived in Bangkok after registration had ended and was barred from participating; she was allowed to view the competition in the audience, and was personally invited to compete in Miss Universe 2019.
Ángela Ponce of Spain became the first openly transgender woman to compete in Miss Universe. Although she failed to advance to the top twenty, Ponce was honored by pageant organizers during the competition for the historical importance of her participation. The rules of the pageant were changed to allow transgender women to compete in 2012, after the Miss Universe Organization, owned at the time by Donald Trump, was criticized and threatened with legal action for initially disqualifying Jenna Talackova from the Miss Universe Canada competition after discovering she was transgender.

Results

PlacementContestant
Miss Universe 2018
  • ' – Catriona Gray
1st Runner-Up
  • ' – Tamaryn Green
    • 2nd Runner-Up
  • ' – Sthefany Gutiérrez
    • Top 5
  • ' – Kiara Ortega
  • ' – H'Hen Niê
    • Top 10
  • ' – Akisha Albert
  • ' – Marta Stepien
  • ' – Natalia Carvajal
  • ' – Manita Devkota
  • ' – Sophida Kanchanarin
    • Top 20
  • ' – Francesca Hung
  • ' – Zoé Brunet
  • ' – Mayra Dias
  • ' – Dee-Ann Kentish-Rogers
  • ' – Enikő Kecskès
  • ' - Sonia Fergina Citra
  • ' - Grainne Gallanagh
  • ' - Emily Maddison
  • ' - Magdalena Swat
  • ' - Sarah Rose Summers

    • Order of announcements

    (Vote?

    Top 20

    1. South Africa
    2. Philippines
    3. Nepal
    4. Vietnam
    5. Thailand
    6. Poland
    7. Belgium
    8. Great Britain
    9. Hungary
    10. Ireland
    11. Curaçao
    12. Costa Rica
    13. Canada
    14. Puerto Rico
    15. Jamaica
    16. USA
    17. Venezuela
    18. Indonesia
    19. Brazil
    20. Australia

      Top 10

    21. South Africa
    22. Vietnam
    23. Venezuela
    24. Philippines
    25. Costa Rica
    26. Curaçao
    27. Nepal
    28. Canada
    29. Thailand
    30. Puerto Rico

      Top 5

    31. Puerto Rico
    32. Vietnam
    33. Philippines
    34. South Africa
    35. Venezuela

      Top 3

    36. Philippines
    37. South Africa
    38. Venezuela

      Pageant

    Format

    Unlike in recent years, the contestants were trimmed down to 20 semifinalists, compared to 16 in 2017 and 13 in 2016. This semifinal group size was last used in 2006 and continues to be used in 2019. The initial semifinalists were selected through a closed-door interview and a preliminary competition—in swimwear and evening gown—held several days before the finals night. The continental format for the second time in this edition, introduced in the 2017 edition, remained—consisting of five semifinalists from Europe, five from the Americas, five from Africa and Asia-Pacific, and five wildcards—regardless of continental grouping. The top 20 were then tasked to give an opening statement—a 15-second statement about the contestant—to the judges and viewing public, after which the judges narrowed downed the semifinalists to the top 10, who then competed in both swimsuit and evening gown. After the swimwear and evening gown competitions, the judges then selected the top five to compete in the preliminary question and answer round. After said segment, the judges selected the final three. The top three participated in the final word and final look portions, after which the judges chose Miss Universe 2018 and her two runners-up. For this edition, there was no online voting component for viewers at home.

    Selection committee

    The seven judges for both the preliminary competition and the final telecast were an all-female panel which included:
    94 contestants competed for the title.
    Country/TerritoryDelegateAgeHometownHeightContinental Group
    AlbaniaTrejsi Sejdini18Tirana6 ft 0 in Europe
    AngolaAna Liliana Avião24Andulo6 ft 0 in Africa
    ArgentinaAgustina Pivowarchuk22Buenos Aires5 ft 7 in Americas
    ArmeniaEliza Muradyan25Etchmiadzin5 ft 5 in Asia
    ArubaKimberly Julsing20Wayaca6 ft 0 in Americas
    AustraliaFrancesca Hung24Sydney5 ft 8 in Oceania
    BahamasDanielle Grant23Nassau5 ft 9 in Americas
    BarbadosMeghan Theobalds27Christ Church6 ft 1 in Americas
    BelgiumZoé Brunet18Namur5 ft 9 in Europe
    BelizeJenelli Fraser27Belize City5 ft 7 in Americas
    BoliviaJoyce Prado21Santa Cruz5 ft 9 in Americas
    BrazilMayra Dias27Itacoatiara5 ft 7 in Americas
    British Virgin Islands A’yana Keshelle Phillips23Sea Cows Bay5 ft 7 in Americas
    BulgariaGabriela Topalova22Plovdiv6 ft 4 in Europe
    CambodiaNat Rern22Kampong Cham5 ft 6 in Asia
    CanadaMarta Stępień24Windsor5 ft 10 in Americas
    Cayman IslandsCaitlin Tyson24Bodden Town5 ft 9 in Americas
    ChileAndrea Díaz27Santiago5 ft 9 in Americas
    ChinaMeisu Qin24Anshan5 ft 10 in Asia
    ColombiaValeria Morales20Cali5 ft 8 in Americas
    Costa RicaNatalia Carvajal28San Jose5 ft 8 in Americas
    CroatiaMia Pojatina23Nova Gradiška5 ft 9 in Europe
    CuraçaoAkisha Albert23Willemstad5 ft 8 in Americas
    Czech RepublicLea Šteflíčková20Prague5 ft 10 in Europe
    DenmarkHelena Heuser22Copenhagen5 ft 9 in Europe
    Dominican RepublicAldy Bernard23Laguna Salada5 ft 11 in Americas
    EcuadorVirginia Limongi24Portoviejo5 ft 9 in Americas
    EgyptNariman Khaled22Hurghada5 ft 6 in Africa
    El SalvadorMarisela de Montecristo26San Salvador5 ft 9 in Americas
    FinlandAlina Voronkova23Helsinki5 ft 7 in Europe
    FranceEva Colas22Bastia5 ft 6 in Europe
    GeorgiaLara Yan25Telavi5 ft 9 in Asia
    GermanyCeline Willers25Munich5 ft 8 in Europe
    GhanaAkpene Diata Hoggar25Tefle5 ft 9 in Africa
    Great BritainDee-Ann Kentish-Rogers25Birmingham5 ft 9 in Europe
    GreeceIoanna Bella22Veria6 ft 0 in Europe
    GuamAthena Su McNinch20Mangilao5 ft 7 in Oceania
    GuatemalaMariana García19Guatemala City5 ft 9 in Americas
    HaitiSamantha Colas26Port-au-Prince5 ft 10 in Americas
    HondurasVanessa Villars20Santa Bárbara5 ft 10 in Americas
    HungaryEnikő Kecskès21Budapest5 ft 7 in Europe
    IcelandKatrín Lea Elenudóttir19Reykjavík5 ft 6 in Europe
    IndiaNehal Chudasama22Mumbai5 ft 6 in Asia
    IndonesiaSonia Fergina Citra26Tanjung Pandan5 ft 8 in Asia
    IrelandGrainne Gallanagh24Buncrana5 ft 9 in Europe
    IsraelNikol Reznikov18Afula5 ft 7 in Asia
    ItalyErica De Matteis24Rome5 ft 11 in Europe
    JamaicaEmily Maddison19Saint Andrew5 ft 9 in Americas
    JapanYuumi Kato22Aichi5 ft 6 in Asia
    KazakhstanSabina Azimbayeva18Almaty5 ft 7 in Asia
    KenyaWabaiya Kariuki22Nairobi5 ft 5 in Africa
    KoreaJi Hyun Baek25Daegu5 ft 9 in Asia
    KosovoZana Berisha24Suhareke5 ft 7 in Europe
    KyrgyzstanBegimay Karybekova20Bishkek5 ft 10 in Asia
    LaosOn-anong Homsombath23Vientiane Prefecture5 ft 6 in Asia
    LebanonMaya Reaidy23Tannourine5 ft 8 in Asia
    MalaysiaJane Teoh21Penang5 ft 10 in Asia
    MaltaFrancesca Mifsud22Żejtun5 ft 7 in Europe
    MauritiusVarsha Ragoobarsing28Flacq6 ft 0 in Africa
    MexicoAndrea Toscano20Manzanillo5 ft 9 in Americas
    MongoliaDolgion Delgerjav27Ulaanbaatar5 ft 8 in Asia
    MyanmarHnin Thway Yu Aung22Yangon5 ft 6 in Asia
    NamibiaSelma Kamanya21Windhoek5 ft 6 in Africa
    NepalManita Devkota23Gorkha5 ft 8 in Asia
    NetherlandsRahima Dirkse25Rotterdam5 ft 11 in Europe
    New Zealand Estelle Curd27Auckland5 ft 9 in Oceania
    NicaraguaAdriana Paniagua23Chinandega5 ft 7 in Americas
    NigeriaAramide Lopez21Lagos6 ft 0 in Africa
    NorwaySusanne Guttorm22Karasjok5 ft 9 in Europe
    PanamaRosa Montezuma25Alto Caballero5 ft 7 in Americas
    ParaguayBelén Alderete24Asunción5 ft 8 in Americas
    PeruRomina Lozano21Bellavista5 ft 10 in Americas
    PhilippinesCatriona Gray24Oas5 ft 10 in Asia
    PolandMagdalena Swat27Ostrowiec Świętokrzyski5 ft 8 in Europe
    PortugalFilipa Barroso20Setúbal5 ft 9 in Europe
    Puerto RicoKiara Ortega25Rincón5 ft 7 in Americas
    RussiaYulia Polyachikhina18Cheboksary5 ft 8 in Asia
    Saint LuciaAngella Dalsou24Castries5 ft 6 in Americas
    SingaporeZahra Khanum23Singapore City5 ft 4 in Asia
    Slovak RepublicBarbora Hanová24Lučenec5 ft 6 in Europe
    South AfricaTamaryn Green24Paarl5 ft 9 in Africa
    SpainAngela Ponce27Seville5 ft 8 in Europe
    Sri LankaOrnella Gunesekere26Mount Lavinia5 ft 7 in Asia
    SwedenEmma Strandberg22Hallstahammar5 ft 9 in Europe
    SwitzerlandJastina Doreen Riederer20Spreitenbach5 ft 7 in Europe
    ThailandSophida Kanchanarin23Bangkok5 ft 7 in Asia
    TurkeyTara De Vries20Istanbul5 ft 9 in Asia
    UkraineKaryna Zhosan23Odessa5 ft 10 in Europe
    United StatesSarah Rose Summers24Omaha5 ft 5 in Americas
    US Virgin IslandsAniska Tonge27Charlotte Amalie5 ft 8 in Americas
    UruguaySofía Marrero18Canelones5 ft 8 in Americas
    VenezuelaSthefany Gutiérrez19Barcelona5 ft 9 in Americas
    VietnamH'Hen Niê26Đắk Lắk5 ft 8 in Asia
    ZambiaMelba Shakabozha23Lusaka5 ft 11 in Africa