Shree Saini (born January 6, 1996) is an American model and beauty pageant titleholder of Indian descent. She represented the United States at

Miss World 2021 Miss World 2021 was the 70th edition of the Miss World pageant, held at the Coca-Cola Music Hall in San Juan, Puerto Rico on 16 March 2022. The coronation was originally scheduled to be held on 16 December 2021 at the José Miguel Agrelot Col ...

, placing 1st runner-up and winning the Beauty with a Purpose National Ambassadorship.

Early life

Shree Saini was born on January 6, 1996, in

Punjab, India Punjab (; ) is a States and union territories of India, state in northern India. Forming part of the larger Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, the state is bordered by the States and union territories of India, Indian states of Himachal ...

, and has lived in the United States since age 5. For the first 12 years of her life, while growing up in

Moses Lake, Washington Moses Lake is a city in Grant County, Washington, United States. The population was 25,146 as of the 2020 census. Moses Lake is the largest city in Grant County. The city anchors the Moses Lake Micropolitan area, which includes all of Grant ...

, Saini's heartbeat had an average of just 20 beats per minute. Doctors told her she could never dance again but she persisted, and continued training in ballet. Later in life, Saini was involved in a major car crash in Moses Lake that resulted in her suffering from significant facial burns. Saini was advised that her recovery would take a year, but she returned to her classes after just two weeks.

Education

Saini attended the University of Washington. She is a trained

ballerina A ballet dancer ( it, ballerina fem.; ''ballerino'' masc.) is a person who practices the art of classical ballet. Both females and males can practice ballet; however, dancers have a strict hierarchy and strict gender roles. They rely on ...

, and has been accepted to train at the

Joffrey Ballet The Joffrey Ballet is one of the premier dance companies and training institutions in the world today. Located in Chicago, Illinois, the Joffrey regularly performs classical and contemporary ballets during its annual performance season at Lyric ...

Pageantry

Saini, who was listed as both a resident of

Seattle Seattle ( ) is a port, seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the county seat, seat of King County, Washington, King County, Washington (state), Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in bo ...

and

Ellensburg, Washington Ellensburg is a city in and the county seat of Kittitas County, Washington, United States. It is located just east of the Cascade Range near the junction of Interstate 90 and Interstate 82. The population was 18,666 at the 2020 census. and ...

, in 2020, was the 2020

Miss Washington World The Miss Washington World competition is a beauty pageant that selects the representative for Washington in the Miss World America pageant. The current Miss Washington World is Shree Saini of Ellensburg Ellensburg is a city in and the coun ...

and America's Beauty with a Purpose National Ambassador, which is a preliminary competition to Miss World America. In October 2019, Saini collapsed at the Miss World America preliminary. In 2020, Saini was also a World Peace Messenger award recipient from Passion Vista. On October 2, 2021, Shree Saini was appointed

Miss World America Miss (pronounced ) is an English language honorific typically used for a girl, for an unmarried woman (when not using another title such as "Doctor" or " Dame"), or for a married woman retaining her maiden name. Originating in the 17th century, i ...

2021, and crowned by

Diana Hayden Diana Hayden (born 1 May 1973) is an Indian actress, television host, model and the winner of Miss World 1997 pageant. She is the third Indian woman to win the title of Miss World. She also won three subtitles during the pageant and is the on ...

Miss World 1997 Miss World 1997, the 47th edition of the Miss World pageant, was held on 22 November 1997 at the Plantation Club Seychelles in Baie Lazare, Seychelles. 86 delegates competed for the coveted crown. At the end of the event, India's Diana Hayden ca ...

. She is the first Indian-American to hold the Miss World America title. Shree Saini would go on to represent the United States of America at

in Puerto Rico.

Miss World 2021

Saini finished as the first runner up in the Miss World 2021 competition, where

Karolina Bielawska Karolina Bielawska (born 11 April 1999) is a Polish model, television presenter, and beauty queen who was crowned Miss World 2021. She became the second titleholder from Poland, the first one being Aneta Kręglicka who won the pageant in 1989. ...

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, , is a country in Central Europe. Poland is divided into Voivodeships of Poland, sixteen voivodeships and is the fifth most populous member state of the European Union (EU), with over 38 mill ...

was crowned as the winner. She was also chosen as the 2021 Beauty with a Purpose Ambassador and will travel with Bielawska during her reign.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Saini, Shree Living people American people of Punjabi descent American female models of Indian descent American beauty pageant contestants American beauty pageant winners 1996 births People from Ellensburg, Washington People from Seattle People from Moses Lake, Washington Miss World 2021 delegates Indian emigrants to the United States Beauty pageant contestants