Valeria Piazza Vásquez (born 8 December 1989) is a

Peruvian Peruvians ( es, peruanos) are the citizens of Peru. There were Andean and coastal ancient civilizations like Caral, which inhabited what is now Peruvian territory for several millennia before the Spanish conquest of Peru, Spanish conquest in th ...

social communicator, model, and beauty pageant titleholder who won

Miss Peru 2016 The Miss Peru 2016 pageant was held on the night of April 23rd, 2016. This national beauty contest inaugurated the brand new Ecological Center Studios of América Televisión, America Television in Pachacamac, Lima, Lima, Peru, after weeks of even ...

and represented

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = National seal , national_motto = "Firm and Happy f ...

at the

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, ...

pageant where she was a semifinalist.

Early life

Piazza born in

Lima Lima ( ; ), originally founded as Ciudad de Los Reyes (City of The Kings) is the capital and the largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón, Rímac and Lurín Rivers, in the desert zone of the central coastal part of ...

, the capital city of

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = National seal , national_motto = "Firm and Happy f ...

on 8 December 1989. She graduated with a degree in communications from the

University of Lima The University of Lima ( es, Universidad de Lima) is a private nonprofit university in Lima, Peru. It was founded in 1962 and it is considered one of the most prestigious and remembered universities in Peru. The decision to create the Universi ...

. As of 2019, she currently works for Peruvian national broadcaster

América Televisión América Televisión is a Peruvian television network, founded in 1958. The network is owned by Plural TV, which is a joint venture of the '' El Comercio'' and ''La República'' daily newspapers. It was the second television channel to be fou ...

Pageantry

Her journey began with modeling from a young age and that transcended to the international level. She participated at Miss Model of the World 2014, where she finished as a finalist and at Tropic Beauty of the World 2015 where she placed as the 1st Runner-up. Her aforementioned accolades gave her the experience required to participate in larger competitions. In 2016, Piazza competed at her country's national beauty pageant for the first time. Cited as one of the favorites for the title, she won the national title of

on April 23rd, 2016. She was crowned by

Miss Peru 2015 The final of the Miss Perú 2015 pageant was held on the night June 2, 2015 at the Belmond Miraflores Park Hotel. It was the first year under the new Miss Peru Organization, marking the comeback of Jessica Newton as national director. The first cu ...

Laura Spoya Laura Vivian Spoya Solano (born July 25, 1991) is a Peruvian TV Host, model and beauty pageant titleholder who won her home country's beauty national title of Miss Peru, Miss Peru 2015. She represented Peru at the Miss Universe 2015 pageant. Pe ...

and special guest

Miss Universe 2015 Miss Universe 2015 was the 64th Miss Universe pageant, held at The AXIS at Planet Hollywood in Las Vegas, Nevada, United States on December 20, 2015. This was the first edition of the pageant to be held under the ownership of WME/IMG, whic ...

Pia Wurtzbach Pia Alonzo Wurtzbach ( ; ; born September 24, 1989), formerly known professionally as Pia Romero, is a Filipino model, actress and beauty queen who is known for being crowned Miss Universe 2015. She joined Binibining Pilipinas pageant thre ...

of the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

. Piazza represented

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = National seal , national_motto = "Firm and Happy f ...

pageant where she successfully placed in the Top 13. She became the 18th Peruvian to place in

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 ...

history. She was the first Peruvian to place in the semifinals since

Nicole Faverón Nicole may refer to: People * Nicole (name) * Nicole (American singer) (born 1958), a contestant in season 3 of the American ''The X Factor'' * Nicole (Chilean singer) (born 1977) * Nicole (German singer) (born 1964), winner of the 1982 Eurovi ...

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gat ...

and the first limeña to place as

Miss Peru Miss Perú is the national beauty pageant of the Republic of Peru. The contest gathers participants from all over the nation, including Peruvian women representing their community overseas. Having been broadcast by all the major television netw ...

since María Francesca Zaza in 1982.

Personal life

In October 2016, while continuing her social work in

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = National seal , national_motto = "Firm and Happy f ...

and preparing for

, Piazza was injured in a car accident after her vehicle was hit by another driver. In January 2018, Piazza was admitted to the

intensive care unit 220px, Intensive care unit An intensive care unit (ICU), also known as an intensive therapy unit or intensive treatment unit (ITU) or critical care unit (CCU), is a special department of a hospital or health care facility that provides intensi ...

for a life-threatening autoimmune disease she had been born with. She was heavily sedated and visits were restricted, but eventually made a recovery.

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Piazza, Valeria People from Lima Peruvian female models Miss Universe 2016 contestants 1989 births Living people Peruvian beauty pageant winners Peruvian people of Italian descent Peruvian people of Spanish descent University of Lima alumni