# Miss Universe 2024

Miss Universe 2024 was the 73rd Miss Universe pageant, held at the Arena CDMX in Mexico City, Mexico, on 16 November 2024.
Sheynnis Palacios of Nicaragua crowned Victoria Kjær Theilvig of Denmark as her successor at the end of the event. This was Denmark's first win in the pageant's history.
Contestants from a record 125 countries and territories competed in the pageant, surpassing the previous record of 94 entrants set in 2018.

## Background
### Location and date

On 18 November 2023, at the Miss Universe 2023 pageant, Raúl Rocha Cantú, the owner of Legacy Holding Group USA Inc., announced that the 73rd edition of the Miss Universe pageant would be held in Mexico, marking the first time the country hosted the pageant since 2007.
On 24 August 2024, the organizers announced that the pageant would be held at the Mexico City Arena, also known as Arena CDMX, on 16 November, with the preliminary rounds on 14 November.

### Selection of participants

In September 2023, during the Tanner Fletcher show at New York Fashion Week, Miss Universe 2022 R'Bonney Gabriel confirmed that the Miss Universe Organization had removed age restrictions for contestants over the age of 18, which were introduced following the 2023 pageant. Before this, the pageant had restricted participation to women between ages 18–28 on the year of the pageant, outside of special circumstances. Also, height and weight restrictions were removed.

#### Replacements

Franki Russell was initially appointed as the representative for New Zealand. However, the franchise owner withdrew her representation and relinquished its franchise, citing non-compliance with guidelines set by the Miss Universe Organization. Subsequently, a new organization was awarded the franchise and Victoria Vincent was named the new representative.
Fay Asghari was the original winner of the Miss Universe Persia 2024 pageant, which selects the Iranian representative in Miss Universe. However, Asghari eventually relinquished her crown due to conflict with her work, and was replaced by her first runner-up Ava Vahneshan.
Andrea Radford won Miss Universe Guatemala in July but relinquished her title after becoming pregnant. She was replaced by her first runner-up, Ana Gabriela Villanueva.
Irina Zakharova was originally crowned as Miss Universe Armenia 2024 but faced backlash from the Armenian public after being identified as a Russian national. Eventually, the Miss Universe Organization disqualified her, indicating that she had violated rules on the eligibility to participate. She was then replaced by Emma Avanesyan, one of her runner-ups.
Emma Heyst originally won the title of Miss Denmark 2024 and was entitled to represent Denmark in the Miss Universe 2024 competition. However, due to inadequate preparation for the event, she withdrew from the competition in September and was replaced by Victoria Kjær Theilvig, who subsequently won the title of Miss Universe 2024.
Karyna Kisialiova was crowned as the very first Miss Universe Belarus. She and Miss Queen Belarus Organization withdrew due to unknown reasons. Miss Belarus 2023 winner Eleonora Kachalovskaya was appointed the new representative by its new franchise holder and national director.

#### Debuts, returns, and withdrawals

This edition marked the debut of Belarus, Eritrea, Guinea, Iran, Macau, Maldives, Moldova, North Macedonia, Somalia, the United Arab Emirates, and Uzbekistan.
Additionally, this edition featured the returns of Cuba, which last competed in 1967; Fiji in 1981; Guadeloupe and Martinique in 1984; the Democratic Republic of the Congo (as Zaire), Ivory Coast, and Samoa (as Western Samoa) in 1986; Senegal in 1987; Gibraltar in 1990; Bonaire and Suriname in 1999; Hong Kong in 2000; Cyprus in 2012; Botswana and Estonia in 2013; Turks and Caicos in 2014; Montenegro and Serbia in 2015; Sri Lanka and Zambia in 2018; Bangladesh, New Zealand, Tanzania, and the United States Virgin Islands in 2019; Israel, Kenya, and Romania in 2021; and Armenia, Belize, China, Kyrgyzstan, Turkey, and Uruguay, which last competed in 2022.
Italy Mora of Panama was disqualified during the pageant due to leaving the hotel without consent from the Miss Universe Organization. This decision was made by the Disciplinary Committee of Miss Universe Organization jointly with their local franchise holder.
Prior to the preliminary competition, Edona Bajrami of Kosovo and Mia le Roux of South Africa withdrew due to health reasons. Bahar Mirzayeva of Azerbaijan was supposed to compete, but did not show up in the host country.

### New crown

On 14 November, the pageant unveiled the "Lumière de l’Infini" (transl. "The Light of Infinity") as the 13th crown used in the history of the pageant. The crown, provided by Jewelmer, is adorned with diamonds and 23 golden south sea pearls. Created over the span of two years, the crown was crafted by Filipino craftsmen using traditional techniques from Place Vendôme.
However, the fact that the material chosen for the new crown came from the Philippines did not please everyone. An indigenous group from the region, where the pearls were collected, Sambilog-Balik Bugsuk Movement, published an open letter to the eventual winner, Kjær Theilvig, condemning the crown designers for its ties to the "suffering of Indigenous Peoples in Bugsuk Island" and urging her to use her platform to highlight the issues faced by marginalized groups around the world.

## Pageant
### Format

The number of semifinalists in this edition increased from twenty to thirty, marking the highest number of semifinalists in the history of the pageant. The preliminary competition, consisting of the swimsuit segment, evening gown and closed-door interviews, determined the semifinalists for the pageant. Four continental queens and one fan-vote winner automatically advanced to the semifinals. The initial group of semifinalists then competed in the swimsuit segment, from which twelve contestants progressed to the evening gown competition. Subsequently, five contestants advanced to the question-and-answer round, where the winner and her four runners-up were announced.

### Selection committee

* Camila Guiribitey – Cuban philanthropist and entrepreneur
* Emilio Estefan – Latin musician and music producer from Cuba
* Eva Cavalli – Fashion designer and Miss Universe 1977 1st Runner-up from Austria
* Fariana – Colombian actress and singer
* Gabriela Gonzalez – Mexican fashion designer
* Gary Nader – Lebanese-Dominican art collector
* Gianluca Vacchi – Italian entrepreneur, internet personality, and President of SEA Societa Europea Autocaravan
* Jessica Carrillo – Mexican news reporter at Telemundo
* Lele Pons – Venezuelan-American singer, actress, and YouTube personality
* Margaret Gardiner – Journalist and Miss Universe 1978 from South Africa
* Michael Cinco – Filipino fashion designer based in Dubai
* Nova Stevens – Advocate and Miss Universe Canada 2020

## Results
### Placements

| Placement | Contestant |
| Miss Universe 2024 | Denmark – Victoria Kjær Theilvig |
| 1st runner-up | Nigeria – Chidimma Adetshina Δ |
| 2nd runner-up | Mexico – María Fernanda Beltrán |
| 3rd runner-up | Thailand – Suchata Chuangsri |
| 4th runner-up | Venezuela – Ileana Márquez |
| Top 12 | Argentina – Magalí Benejam  Bolivia – Juliana Barrientos  Canada – Ashley Callingbull  Chile – Emilia Dides §  Peru – Tatiana Calmell Δ  Puerto Rico – Jennifer Colón  Russia – Valentina Alekseeva |
| Top 30 | Aruba – Anouk Eman  Cambodia – Davin Prasath  China – Jia Qi  Cuba – Marianela Ancheta  Dominican Republic – Celinee Santos  Ecuador – Mara Topić  Egypt – Logina Salah  Finland – Matilda Wirtavuori Δ  France – Indira Ampiot  India – Rhea Singha  Japan – Kaya Chakrabortty  Macau – Cassandra Chiu  Malaysia – Sandra Lim  Nicaragua – Geyssell García  Philippines – Chelsea Manalo Δ  Serbia – Ivana Trišić  Vietnam – Nguyễn Cao Kỳ Duyên  Zimbabwe – Sakhile Dube |
§ – Voted into the Top 30 by viewers Δ – Placed into the Top 30 as a continental queen

### Continental Queens

The Continental Queens were revealed at the press conference following the final competition. The winners were chosen regardless of their final placement in the competition.
| Continental Group | Contestant |
| Africa & Oceania | Nigeria – Chidimma Adetshina |
| Asia | Philippines – Chelsea Manalo |
| Europe & Middle East | Finland – Matilda Wirtavuori |
| Americas | Peru – Tatiana Calmell |

### Special awards

After the preliminary competition, special awards were given to the national directors and contestants who demonstrated their dedication and passion for the Miss Universe organization.
| Award | Contestant |
| Miss Congeniality | Trinidad and Tobago – Jenelle Thongs |
| Best Skin Award | Honduras – Stephanie Cam |
| People’s Choice Award | Chile - Emilia Dides |
| Award | National Director |
| Best National Director | Miss Universe Canada – Dennis Dávila |
| Best National Pageant | Miss Universe Vietnam – Nguyễn Thị Hương Ly |
| Best National Host Tour Country | Miss Universe Philippines – Jonas Gaffud |
| Beyond the Crown Award | Miss Universe Puerto Rico – Yizette Cifredo |

#### Best National Costume

The Best in National Costume award was announced on their official social media platforms two weeks after the competition, based on votes in the Miss Universe app.
| Placement | Contestant |
| Winner | Philippines – Chelsea Manalo |
| 2nd Place | Chile – Emilia Dides |
| 3rd Place | Vietnam – Nguyễn Cao Kỳ Duyên |

#### Voice for Change

The contestants participated in the Voice For Change competition, where they showcased their advocacy through a three-minute video. The competition was sponsored by jewelry brand Mouawad and communication platform CI Talks, and the winners were determined through an online vote and a selection committee. During the preliminary competition, the seven silver finalists were announced and the three gold winners were unveiled during the preliminary competition.
| Placement | Contestant |
| Gold Winners | Bolivia – Juliana Barrientos  Cambodia – Davin Prasath  Guatemala – Ana Gabriela Villanueva |
| Silver Finalists | Aruba – Anouk Eman  Bahrain – Shereen Ahmed  Cayman Islands – Raegan Rutty  Eritrea – Snit Tewoldemedhin  Finland – Matilda Wirtavuori  Guinea – Saran Bah  Thailand – Suchata Chuangsri |

## Contestants

125 contestants competed for the title:
| Country/Territory | Contestant | Age | Hometown |
| Albania | Franceska Rustem | 19 | Durrës |
| Angola | Nelma Ferreira | 26 | Benguela |
| Argentina | Magalí Benejam | 29 | Córdoba |
| Armenia | Emma Avanesyan | 32 | Yerevan |
| Aruba | Anouk Eman | 32 | Oranjestad |
| Australia | Zoe Creed | 23 | Brisbane |
| Bahamas | Selvinique Wright | 32 | Andros |
| Bahrain | Shereen Ahmed | 30 | Manama |
| Bangladesh | Aniqa Alam | 32 | Dhaka |
| Belarus | Eleanora Kachalovskaya | 24 | Minsk |
| Belgium | Kenza Ameloot | 22 | Sint-Amandsberg |
| Belize | Halima Hoy | 30 | Port Loyola |
| Bolivia | Juliana Barrientos | 27 | Cochabamba |
| Bonaire | Ruby Pouchet | 29 | Kralendijk |
| Botswana | Thanolo Keutlwile | 28 | Thamaga |
| Brazil | Luana Cavalcante | 25 | Recife |
| British Virgin Islands | Deyounce Lowenfield | 20 | Tortola |
| Bulgaria | Elena Vian | 38 | Haskovo |
| Cambodia | Davin Prasath | 33 | Phnom Penh |
| Cameroon | Noura Njikam | 25 | Yaoundé |
| Canada | Ashley Callingbull | 35 | Enoch |
| Cayman Islands | Raegan Rutty | 22 | East End |
| Chile | Emilia Dides | 25 | Vitacura |
| China | Jia Qi | 26 | Chengdu |
| Colombia | Daniela Toloza | 30 | Cali |
| Costa Rica | Elena Hidalgo | 32 | San José |
| Côte d'Ivoire | Marie-Emmanuelle Diamala | 20 | Aboisso |
| Croatia | Zrinka Ćorić | 23 | Dubrovnik |
| Cuba | Marianela Ancheta | 31 | Ranchuelo |
| Curaçao | Kimberly de Boer | 19 | Willemstad |
| Cyprus | Katerina Dimitriou | 29 | Nicosia |
| Czech Republic | Marie Danči | 28 | Krnov |
| Democratic Republic of the Congo | Ilda Amani | 26 | Bukavu |
| Denmark | Victoria Kjær Theilvig | 21 | Herlev |
| Dominican Republic | Celinee Santos | 24 | Santo Domingo |
| Ecuador | Mara Topić | 30 | Guayaquil |
| Egypt | Logina Salah | 34 | Alexandria |
| El Salvador | Florence García | 26 | San Miguel |
| Equatorial Guinea | Diana Angono Mouhafo | 25 | Malabo |
| Eritrea | Snit Tewoldemedhin | 25 | Asmara |
| Estonia | Valeria Vasilieva | 22 | Tallinn |
| Fiji | Manshika Prasad | 24 | Levuka |
| Finland | Matilda Wirtavuori | 24 | Tampere |
| France | Indira Ampiot | 20 | Basse-Terre |
| Germany | Pia Theissen | 26 | Cologne |
| Gibraltar | Shyanne McIntosh | 25 | Gibraltar |
| Great Britain | Christina Chalk | 31 | Dunblane |
| Greece | Christianna Katsieri | 22 | Piraeus |
| Guadeloupe | Coraly Desplan | 20 | Pointe-Noire |
| Guatemala | Ana Gabriela Villanueva | 22 | Santa Cruz Naranjo |
| Guinea | Saran Bah | 29 | Conakry |
| Guyana | Ariana Blaize | 26 | Georgetown |
| Honduras | Stephanie Cam | 32 | San Pedro Sula |
| Hong Kong | Joanne Rhodes | 24 | Hong Kong |
| Hungary | Nóra Kenéz | 28 | Szombathely |
| Iceland | Sóldís Vala Ívarsdóttir | 18 | Árbær |
| India | Rhea Singha | 19 | Ahmedabad |
| Indonesia | Clara Shafira Krebs | 22 | Tangerang |
| Iran | Ava Vahneshan | 26 | Mashhad |
| Ireland | Sofia Labus | 21 | Montenotte |
| Israel | Ofir Korsia | 23 | Rishon LeZion |
| Italy | Glelany Cavalcante | 30 | Civitanova Marche |
| Jamaica | Rachel Silvera | 25 | Saint Mary |
| Japan | Kaya Chakrabortty | 23 | Kobe |
| Kazakhstan | Madina Almukhanova | 24 | Almaty |
| Kenya | Irene Ng'endo | 26 | Juja |
| Kyrgyzstan | Maya Turdalieva | 25 | Bishkek |
| Laos | Phiranya Thipphomvong | 28 | Houaphanh |
| Latvia | Maria Vicinska | 26 | Riga |
| Lebanon | Nada Koussa | 26 | Rahbeh |
| Macau | Cassandra Chiu | 23 | Nossa Senhora do Carmo |
| Malaysia | Sandra Lim | 23 | Selangor |
| Maldives | Mariyam Shaina | 21 | Malé |
| Malta | Beatrice Njoya | 40 | Saint Paul's Bay |
| Martinique | Catherine Edouard | 25 | Fort-de-France |
| Mauritius | Tania René | 27 | Quatre-Bornes |
| Mexico | María Fernanda Beltrán | 24 | Culiacan |
| Moldova | Djulieta Calalb | 20 | Chișinău |
| Mongolia | Nominzul Zandangiin | 19 | Ulaanbaatar |
| Montenegro | Rumina Ivezaj | 20 | Tuzi |
| Myanmar | Thet San Andersen | 27 | Yangon |
| Namibia | Prisca Anyolo | 24 | Windhoek |
| Nepal | Sampada Ghimire | 23 | Bhaktapur |
| Netherlands | Faith Landman | 28 | Zandvoort |
| New Zealand | Victoria Vincent | 29 | Auckland |
| Nicaragua | Geyssell García | 29 | Santo Tomás |
| Nigeria | Chidimma Adetshina | 23 | Taraba |
| North Macedonia | Tea Gjorgievska | 21 | Kumanovo |
| Norway | Lilly Sødal | 21 | Kristiansand |
| Pakistan | Noor Xarmina | 29 | Islamabad |
| Paraguay | Naomi Méndez | 32 | Asunción |
| Peru | Tatiana Calmell | 30 | Talara |
| Philippines | Chelsea Manalo | 25 | Meycauayan |
| Poland | Kasandra Zawal | 29 | Bierzglinek |
| Portugal | Andreia Correia | 26 | Sintra |
| Puerto Rico | Jennifer Colón | 36 | Orocovis |
| Romania | Loredana Salanță | 32 | Bistrița |
| Russia | Valentina Alekseeva | 18 | Cheboksary |
| Saint Lucia | Skye Faucher | 26 | Castries |
| Samoa | Haylani Kuruppu | 26 | Apia |
| Senegal | Fatou Bintou Guèye | 23 | Louga |
| Serbia | Ivana Trišić | 30 | Belgrade |
| Singapore | Charlotte Chia | 26 | Singapore |
| Slovakia | Petra Sivakova | 24 | Šamorín |
| Somalia | Khadija Omar | 23 | Mogadishu |
| South Korea | Ariel Han | 22 | Seoul |
| Spain | Michelle Jiménez | 21 | Palma de Mallorca |
| Sri Lanka | Melloney Dassanayake | 25 | Colombo |
| Suriname | Pooja Chotkan | 23 | Paramaribo |
| Switzerland | Laura Bircher | 24 | Stans |
| Tanzania | Judith Ngusa | 26 | Lindi |
| Thailand | Suchata Chuangsri | 21 | Bangkok |
| Trinidad and Tobago | Jenelle Thongs | 32 | Morvant |
| Turkey | Ayliz Duman | 20 | Istanbul |
| Turks and Caicos Islands | Raynae Myers | 23 | Grand Turk |
| Ukraine | Alina Ponomarenko | 21 | Odesa |
| United Arab Emirates | Emilia Dobreva | 27 | Dubai |
| United States | Alma Cooper | 22 | Okemos |
| United States Virgin Islands | Stephany Andujar | 28 | Saint Thomas |
| Uruguay | Yanina Lucas | 28 | Lavalleja |
| Uzbekistan | Nigina Fakhriddinova | 25 | Navoiy |
| Venezuela | Ileana Márquez | 28 | Valencia |
| Vietnam | Nguyễn Cao Kỳ Duyên | 28 | Nam Định |
| Zambia | Brandina Lubuli | 28 | Mufulira |
| Zimbabwe | Sakhile Dube | 28 | Bulawayo |