Miss Universe 2020 was the 69th

Miss Universe Miss Universe is an annual international beauty pageant that is run by a United States and Thailand based Miss Universe Organization.Natalie Tadena (July 2, 2015"Donald Trump's Miss USA Pageant Lands on Reelz Cable Channel". ''The Wall Stre ...

pageant, held at the

Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Hollywood, also known as The Guitar Hotel, due to its tower constructed to resemble a Gibson Les Paul guitar, is a hotel and casino resort near Hollywood, Florida, United States, located on of the Hollywood Res ...

Hollywood, Florida Hollywood is a city in southern Broward County, Florida, United States, located between Fort Lauderdale and Miami. As of July 1, 2019, Hollywood had a population of 154,817. Founded in 1925, the city grew rapidly in the 1950s and 1960s, and is now ...

, United States on May 16, 2021. At the end of the event,

Zozibini Tunzi Zozibini Tunzi (born 18 September 1993), also known as Zozi Tunzi, is a South African model, actress and beauty pageant titleholder who was crowned Miss Universe 2019. Tunzi had previously been crowned Miss South Africa 2019. She is the third ...

of South Africa crowned

Andrea Meza Alma Andrea Meza Carmona (born 13 August 1994) is a Mexican model and beauty pageant titleholder who was crowned Miss Universe 2020. Since winning the title, she became the third Mexican woman to be crowned Miss Universe. Meza holds the record ...

of Mexico as Miss Universe 2020. It is Mexico's first victory in 10 years, and the third victory of the country in the pageant's history. Contestants from 74 countries and territories competed in this year's pageant, featuring the smallest number of candidates at the pageant since

2003 File:2003 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The crew of STS-107 perished when the Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated during reentry into Earth's atmosphere; SARS became an epidemic in China, and was a precursor to SARS-CoV-2; A des ...

. The competition was hosted by

Mario Lopez Mario Lopez (born October 10, 1973) is an American actor and television host. He has appeared on several television series, in films, and on Broadway theatre, Broadway. He is known for his portrayal of A.C. Slater on ''Saved by the Bell'', ''Sa ...

and

Miss Universe 2012 Miss Universe 2012 was the 61st Miss Universe pageant, held at the PH Live at Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada, United States on December 19, 2012. At the end of the event, Leila Lopes of Angola crowned Olivia Culpo of ...

Olivia Culpo Olivia Frances Culpo (born May 8, 1992) is an American model, fashion influencer, social media personality, and actress. After winning the Miss Rhode Island USA competition, she went on to be crowned Miss USA, and then Miss Universe in 2012. ...

; Lopez last served as host during

Miss Universe 2007 Miss Universe 2007 was the 56th Miss Universe pageant, held at the Auditorio Nacional in Mexico City, Mexico on May 28, 2007. At the end of the event, Zuleyka Rivera of Puerto Rico crowned Riyo Mori from Japan as Miss Universe 2007. It is Jap ...

, while Culpo became the first former Miss Universe titleholder to become the pageant's main host. Colombian

Paulina Vega Paulina Vega Dieppa (; born 15 January 1993) is a Colombian television host, model and beauty queen crowned Miss Colombia 2013 and Miss Universe 2014. Vega is the second Miss Universe from Colombia. Early life Paulina Vega Dieppa was born in Ba ...

and South African

Demi-Leigh Tebow Demi-Leigh Tebow (née Nel-Peters; born 28 June 1995) is a South African model and beauty queen who was crowned Miss Universe 2017. She was crowned Miss South Africa 2017, and is the second Miss Universe winner from South Africa, following Ma ...

served as expert analysts, and the

Cheslie Kryst Cheslie Corrinne Kryst (; April 28, 1991 – January 30, 2022) was an American television correspondent, model, and beauty pageant titleholder who was crowned Miss USA 2019. Kryst was also an attorney and had served as a correspondent for ''Ex ...

served as a backstage correspondent; they had previously been crowned as

Miss Universe 2014 Miss Universe 2014 was the 63rd Miss Universe pageant, held at the FIU Arena in Florida, United States on January 25, 2015. This was the first time in the history of the competition that the pageant was not during the year the title was awarded ...

Miss Universe 2017 Miss Universe 2017 was the 66th Miss Universe pageant, held at The AXIS at Planet Hollywood in Las Vegas, Nevada, United States on November 26, 2017. At the end of the event, Iris Mittenaere of France crowned Demi-Leigh Nel-Peters of South Af ...

, and

Miss USA 2019 Miss USA 2019 was the 68th Miss USA pageant. It was held at the Grand Sierra Resort in Reno, Nevada, on May 2, 2019. Nick Lachey and Vanessa Lachey served as hosts, while Lu Sierra served as commentator, all for the second consecutive time and w ...

, respectively. Puerto Rican singer

Luis Fonsi Luis Alfonso Rodríguez López-Cepero (born April 15, 1978), known by his stage name Luis Fonsi (), is a Puerto Rican singer. He is known for multiple songs, one of them being "Despacito" featuring rapper Daddy Yankee. Fonsi received his first ...

performed. This edition, to date, is the only time the pageant was broadcast on FYI, after being temporarily off from its regular broadcaster

Fox Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush''). Twelve sp ...

due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

-related uncertainties to this edition. This was also the only time

Steve Harvey Broderick Stephen Harvey Sr. Also aired August 16, 2015. (born January 17, 1957) is an American television host, producer, actor, and comedian. He hosts ''The Steve Harvey Morning Show'', ''Family Feud'', '' Celebrity Family Feud,'' the Miss U ...

did not host the pageant between 2015 and 2021.

Background

Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Hollywood 2 (June 2019)

Location and date

On March 3, 2021, the

Miss Universe Organization Miss Universe is an annual international beauty pageant that is run by a United States and Thailand based Miss Universe Organization.Natalie Tadena (July 2, 2015"Donald Trump's Miss USA Pageant Lands on Reelz Cable Channel". ''The Wall Str ...

announced that the grand final of the 2020 pageant, would be on May 16, 2021, at the

, United States. Due to the

, the competition was postponed three times between November 2020 to May 2021. This edition was the third time in the pageant's history where the event was held after the calendar year ended; this previously occurred during

and

Miss Universe 2016 Miss Universe 2016 was the 65th Miss Universe pageant, held at the Mall of Asia Arena, in Pasay, Metro Manila, Philippines on January 30, 2017. This is the second time in the history of the competition that the pageant skipped an entire year, ...

, when both took place in January of the following year. The 2020 edition in May of the following year makes it the latest edition in the competition's history.In addition to not having any public money and having to follow security measures, the delegates were prevented from carrying out public activities outside the resort.It was allowed that in addition to the people involved in the production and organization of the contest, a group of 1750 fans of the event could buy packages to be present at the Theater of the Resort to watch the stages of the competition live.This group was near a quarter of the venue's seating total capacity.

Selection of participants

Contestants from 74 countries and territories were selected to compete in the pageant. Due to the pandemic, numerous national pageants were postponed or canceled entirely, resulting in multiple former runners-up from previous national pageants being appointed, or casting processes taking place instead. Twenty-eight of the delegates were appointees, including Argentina, Armenia, Aruba, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, British Virgin Islands, Bulgaria, Cameroon, Cayman Islands, Curaçao, Czech Republic, Denmark, Dominican Republic, Ghana, Haiti, Honduras, Kazakhstan, Laos, Mauritius, Panama, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Singapore, Slovakia, South Korea and Ukraine. Three contestants were designees after the withdrawal of the original contestant.

Céline Van Ouytsel Céline Van Ouytsel (born 10 October 1996) is a Belgian model and beauty pageant titleholder who was crowned Miss Belgium 2020. She was chosen to represent Belgium at Miss World 2021. Early life Van Ouytsel was born in Herentals, Antwerp, locat ...

Miss Belgium 2020 Miss Belgium 2020 was the 52nd edition of the Miss Belgium pageant, held on January 11, 2020 at the Plopsaland Theater in De Panne, Belgium. Elena Castro Suarez of Antwerp crowned her successor Céline Van Ouytsel of Antwerp at end of the eve ...

, was expected to represent Belgium but was replaced by Dhenia Covens, the second runner-up of Miss Belgium 2018, due to the

COVID-19 pandemic in the United States The COVID-19 pandemic in the United States is a part of the COVID-19 pandemic, worldwide pandemic of COVID-19, coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by SARS-CoV-2, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). In the Uni ...

Amandine Petit Amandine Petit (; born 30 September 1997) is a French model and beauty pageant titleholder who was crowned Miss France 2021. She had previously been crowned Miss Normandy 2020, and is the seventh woman from Normandy to win Miss France. She repre ...

Miss France 2021 Miss France 2021 was the 91st edition of the Miss France pageant. The competition was held on 19 December 2020 at Puy du Fou in Les Epesses, Pays de la Loire. Clémence Botino of Guadeloupe crowned Amandine Petit of Normandy as her successor ...

, was designated to represent France instead of

Clémence Botino Clémence Botino (born 22 January 1997) is a French beauty pageant titleholder who was crowned Miss France 2020. She represented France at Miss Universe 2021, where she placed in the top ten. Early life and education Passionate about fashion, ...

Miss France 2020 Miss France 2020 was the 90th edition of the Miss France pageant, held on 14 December 2019 at the Le Dôme de Marseille in Marseille. Vaimalama Chaves of Tahiti crowned her successor Clémence Botino of Guadeloupe by the end of the event. She ...

. The switch happened due to a potential date conflict between

Miss Universe 2021 Miss Universe 2021 was the 70th Miss Universe pageant, held at the Universe Dome in Eilat, Israel on December 13, 2021. At the end of the event, Andrea Meza of Mexico crowned Harnaaz Sandhu of India as Miss Universe 2021. It is India's firs ...

and Miss France 2022 in December 2021. Botino competed in the 2021 edition of the pageant. Magdalena Kasiborska, Miss Polski 2019, was expected to represent Poland but was forced to withdraw after suffering from a

spinal disc herniation Spinal disc herniation is an injury to the cushioning and connective tissue between vertebrae, usually caused by excessive strain or trauma to the spine. It may result in back pain, pain or sensation in different parts of the body, and physical ...

. Natalia Piguła, the first runner-up of Miss Polski 2019, replaced her. In addition,

María Fernanda Aristizábal María Fernanda Aristizábal Urrea (born 19 June 1997) is a Colombian model and beauty pageant titleholder who was crowned Señorita Colombia 2019. Aristizábal is the first delegate from Quindío to ever be crowned Miss Colombia. She represen ...

Miss Colombia 2019 Miss (pronounced ) is an English language English honorific, honorific typically used for a girl, for an unmarried woman (when not using another title such as "Doctor (title), Doctor" or "Dame (title), Dame"), or for a married woman retaining her ...

, originally was scheduled to participate in this edition but could not as the Miss Colombia Organization lost the franchise to Miss Universe since June 2020. A new organization called

Miss Universe Colombia Miss Universe Colombia is a beauty pageant and an organization conceived in Colombia to select the country's representative to the Miss Universe pageant. The current titleholder is María Fernanda Aristizábal of Quindío. She represented Col ...

, led by Natalie Ackermann, will now be in charge of selecting a representative to Miss Universe.

Laura Olascuaga Laura Victoria Olascuaga Pinto (born 19 June 1995 in Cartagena, Colombia) is a Colombian model and beauty pageant titleholder who was crowned Miss Universe Colombia 2020 pageant on November 16, 2020. She represented Colombia at Miss Universe 2 ...

was the winner of the first edition of the pageant and represented Colombia in Miss Universe. On April 6, 2022, Aristizábal was appointed as Miss Universe Colombia 2022 and will represent Colombia at

Miss Universe 2022 Miss Universe 2022 will be the 71st Miss Universe pageant, to be held at the New Orleans Morial Convention Center in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States on January 14, 2023. Harnaaz Sandhu of India will crown her successor at the end of the e ...

. The 2020 edition saw the debut of

Cameroon Cameroon (; french: Cameroun, ff, Kamerun), officially the Republic of Cameroon (french: République du Cameroun, links=no), is a country in west-central Africa. It is bordered by Nigeria to the west and north; Chad to the northeast; the C ...

, and the returns of

Ghana Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in the west, Burkina Faso in the north, and To ...

and

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

, both of which had not competed since

2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...

Tangia Zaman Methila Tangia Zaman Methila (born 31 January 1992; bn, তানজিয়া জামান মিথিলা) is a Bangladeshi Model (person), Model, television host, Bollywood film actress, and beauty pageant titleholder who was crowned Miss Univ ...

Bangladesh Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mos ...

was set to compete but withdrew from the competition less than a month prior due to the

COVID-19 pandemic in Bangladesh The COVID-19 pandemic in Bangladesh is part of the worldwide pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 () caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (). The virus was confirmed to have spread to Bangladesh in March 2020. The first ...

and the imposition of additional lockdowns and travel restrictions. In addition to Bangladesh, eighteen other countries and territories, due to the pandemic, including

Angola , national_anthem = " Angola Avante"() , image_map = , map_caption = , capital = Luanda , religion = , religion_year = 2020 , religion_ref = , coordina ...

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...

Equatorial Guinea Equatorial Guinea ( es, Guinea Ecuatorial; french: Guinée équatoriale; pt, Guiné Equatorial), officially the Republic of Equatorial Guinea ( es, link=no, República de Guinea Ecuatorial, french: link=no, République de Guinée équatoria ...

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

Guam Guam (; ch, Guåhan ) is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States in the Micronesia subregion of the western Pacific Ocean. It is the westernmost point and territory of the United States (reckoned from the geographic cent ...

Kenya ) , national_anthem = "Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"() , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Nairobi , coordinates = , largest_city = Nairobi , ...

Lithuania Lithuania (; lt, Lietuva ), officially the Republic of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Respublika, links=no ), is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea. Lithuania ...

Mongolia Mongolia; Mongolian script: , , ; lit. "Mongol Nation" or "State of Mongolia" () is a landlocked country in East Asia, bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south. It covers an area of , with a population of just 3.3 million, ...

Namibia Namibia (, ), officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country in Southern Africa. Its western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Zambia and Angola to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and ea ...

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...

Saint Lucia Saint Lucia ( acf, Sent Lisi, french: Sainte-Lucie) is an island country of the West Indies in the eastern Caribbean. The island was previously called Iouanalao and later Hewanorra, names given by the native Arawaks and Caribs, two Amerindian ...

Sierra Leone Sierra Leone,)]. officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country on the southwest coast of West Africa. It is bordered by Liberia to the southeast and Guinea surrounds the northern half of the nation. Covering a total area of , Sierra ...

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...

Tanzania Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands and ...

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...

, and the

US Virgin Islands The United States Virgin Islands,. Also called the ''American Virgin Islands'' and the ''U.S. Virgin Islands''. officially the Virgin Islands of the United States, are a group of Caribbean islands and an unincorporated and organized territory ...

withdrew. The withdrawal of

marks the first time it did not compete in the competition since its debut in

Miss Universe 1952 Miss Universe 1952, the 1st Miss Universe pageant, was held on June 28, 1952 at the Long Beach Municipal Auditorium in Long Beach, California, United States. The pageant was held on the day following the first Miss USA pageant, at the same venue. ...

Results

Placements

§ – Voted into the Top 21 by viewers

Special awards

Pageant

Format

Due to restrictive measures related to the

, the Miss Universe Organization implemented specific changes to the format of this edition. The number of semifinalists was increased to 21— the biggest since the pageant's inception in 1952. The results of the preliminary competition and closed-door interviews determined the 20 semifinalists. The semifinalists were selected in a round-robin system instead of the continental format used between 2017 and 2019. Internet voting returned, with fans being able to vote for one candidate to advance into the semifinals, making the number of semifinalists 21. The Top 21 then competed directly in the swimsuit competition and were narrowed down to the top 10 afterward. The top 10 competed in the evening gown competition, and the top 5 were later announced. The top five competed in the question-and-answer round and the closing statement.

Selection committee

*Sheryl Adkins-Green – American marketing executive *

Arden Cho Arden Lim Cho (born August 16, 1985) is an American actress, singer and model known for portraying Kira Yukimura in the 2011 MTV television series '' Teen Wolf'' and Ingrid Yun in the 2022 Netflix television series '' Partner Track''. Early lif ...

– American actress *

Christine Duffy Christine DeVone Duffy is an American businesswoman. She is the president of Carnival Cruise Line. Early life and education Duffy was born and raised in Northwood, Philadelphia to an entrepreneur father, mother, and sister. She attended H.R. Edm ...

– American businesswoman *

Keltie Knight Keltie Colleen Knight (née Busch; born January 28, 1982) is a Canadian television personality, actress, podcast host, author, and former professional dancer. She was formerly the weekend co-host and correspondent for the syndicated show '' The In ...

– Canadian television host *

Brook Lee Brook Antoinette Mahealani Lee (born January 8, 1971) is an American former beauty queen who was crowned Miss Hawaii USA 1997, Miss USA 1997, and Miss Universe 1997. Lee is the first native Hawaiian to win the title of Miss Universe. Early lif ...

–

Miss Universe 1997 Miss Universe 1997, the 46th Miss Universe pageant, was held on May 16, 1997, at the Miami Beach Convention Center in Miami Beach, Florida, United States. Brook Lee of the United States was crowned by Alicia Machado of Venezuela at the en ...

from the United States *Deepica Mutyala – American entrepreneur *Tatyana Orozco – Colombian businesswoman *

Zuleyka Rivera Zuleyka Jerrís Mendoza Rivera (born October 3, 1987) is a Puerto Rican actress, TV host, dancer, model and beauty queen who won Miss Universe 2006 in Los Angeles. She was previously crowned Miss Puerto Rico Universe 2006. She made her debut a ...

–

Miss Universe 2006 Miss Universe 2006 was the 55th Miss Universe pageant, held at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles, California, United States on July 23, 2006. At the end of the event, Natalie Glebova of Canada crowned Zuleyka Rivera of Puerto Rico as Mi ...

from Puerto Rico

Contestants

74 contestants competed for the title.

Notes

References

External links

* {{Miss Universe countries and territories

2020 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, COVID- ...

2020 beauty pageants 2021 beauty pageants 2021 in Florida 2021 in the United States Beauty pageants in the United States May 2021 events in the United States Events postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic