Miss Universe 2012 was the 61st

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

pageant, held at the PH Live at Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino in

Las Vegas Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave Desert, and second-l ...

, Nevada, United States on December 19, 2012. The contest was won by

Olivia Culpo Olivia Frances Culpo (born May 8, 1992) is an American model, actress, and media personality. Culpo has won Miss Rhode Island USA, Miss USA 2012, and Miss Universe 2012. Early life and education Olivia Frances Culpo was born on May 8, 1992, ...

of the United States, who was crowned by Leila Lopes of Angola. It was the United States' first win in fifteen years, and its eighth win at the pageant. There were contestants from eighty-nine countries and territories, three more than the previous year. It was hosted by

Andy Cohen Andrew Joseph Cohen (born June 2, 1968) is an American radio and television talk show host, producer, and writer. He is the host and executive producer of ''The Real Housewives'' Multimedia franchise, franchise and Bravo (American TV network), B ...

and

Giuliana Rancic Giuliana Rancic (; ; born August 17, 1974) is an Italian-born American Entertainment journalism, entertainment reporter and television personality. She is a co-anchor of ''E! News'' and resides in Chicago and Los Angeles. Early life Rancic was bo ...

, with

Jeannie Mai Jeannie Camtu Mai (born January 4, 1979) is an American television personality, best known for her work on the makeover show '' How Do I Look?'' and the syndicated daytime talk show ''The Real''. As a fashion expert, she is frequently featured o ...

as backstage correspondent. American rock band

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and Australian musician Tim Omaji performed in this year's pageant.

Background

Location and date

In March 2012, the Miss Universe Organization announced that the pageant was postponed to mid-December as broadcaster,

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...

, was unable to broadcast the pageant at the same time as the

2012 Summer Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012, were an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

and the

2012 United States presidential election United States presidential election, Presidential elections were held in the United States on November 6, 2012. Incumbent Democratic Party (United States), Democratic President Barack Obama and his running mate, incumbent Vice President Joe Bi ...

. In April 2012, it was announced that Bangladesh would host the pageant on December 13, 2012. However, in July, the Bangladeshi president announced that they would not host the pageant because of financial constraints. In August 2012, the Dominican government received a proposal from the Miss Universe Organization to host the competition on December 11, 2012. The Dominican Republic had previously hosted

Miss Universe 1977 Miss Universe 1977 was the 26th Miss Universe pageant, held on 16 July 1977 at the National Theater in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. It was the first time in the pageant's history that the event was held in Dominican Republic. Janelle Comm ...

Santo Domingo Santo Domingo, formerly known as Santo Domingo de Guzmán, is the capital and largest city of the Dominican Republic and the List of metropolitan areas in the Caribbean, largest metropolitan area in the Caribbean by population. the Distrito Na ...

. The organization was considering hosting the final night at the Hard Rock Resort and Casino in

Punta Cana Punta Cana is a resort town in the easternmost region of the Dominican Republic. It was politically incorporated as the "Verón–Punta Cana township" in 2006, and it is subject to the municipality of Higüey (La Altagracia Province). According ...

. However, the government said that the country was not able to provide any kind of financial assistance to the pageant, and so was not granted the hosting rights. The organization moved the pageant to

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a landlocked state in the Western United States. It borders Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the seventh-most extensive, th ...

in December changing from the customary mid-year scheduling. On September 27, 2012, the organization confirmed that the 2012 pageant would be held at the Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada, on December 19, 2012.

Selection of participants

Contestants from eighty-nine countries and territories were selected to compete in the competition. Seven of these were appointed to their positions after being a runner-up of their national pageant or were selected through a casting process, while nine were selected to replace the original winners. Adwoa Yamoah, the first runner-up of Miss Universe Canada 2012, was appointed to represent Canada after Sahar Biniaz, Miss Universe Canada 2012, withdrew for personal reasons. Ioánna Yiannakoú, the runner-up of Star Cyprus 2012, was appointed to represent Cyprus after Ntaniella Kefala, Star Cyprus 2012, withdrew for undisclosed reasons. Carola Durán, Miss Dominican Republic 2012, was to compete, but was dethroned after it was discovered that she was previously married and is divorced. She was replaced by, Dulcita Lieggi, the first runner-up. Natalie Korneitsik, the first runner-up of Miss Estonia 2012, was appointed to represent Estonia after the winner

Kätlin Valdmets Kätlin Valdmets (born 1988) is an Estonian beauty queen, fashion model, model, who won the title of Miss Estonia in 2012. References

Living people 1988 births Estonian beauty pageant winners Estonian female models Models from Tal ...

, withdrew due to lack of sponsorship. Marie Payet, the first runner-up of Miss France 2012, was appointed to represent France due to a potential date conflict between Miss Universe 2012 and

Miss France 2013 Miss France 2013 was the 83rd Miss France pageant, held in Limoges on 8 December 2012. Miss France 2012, Delphine Wespiser of Alsace crowned her successor Marine Lorphelin of Burgundy at the end of the event. It was the first time that the pagea ...

, at which Delphine Wespiser, Miss France 2012, was contractually obligated to be present. Channa Divouvi, the first runner-up of Miss Gabon 2012, was appointed to represent Gabon due to a potential date conflict between Miss Universe 2012 and Miss Gabon 2013, at which winner Marie-Noëlle Ada, was contractually obligated to be present.

Shilpa Singh Shilpa Singh is an Indian singer, dancer, model and beauty pageant titleholder. She was the runner-up at I AM She – Miss Universe India 2012. She represented India at the Miss Universe 2012 pageant at Las Vegas and became one of the semi-final ...

, the first runner-up of I Am She 2012, was appointed to represent India after

Urvashi Rautela Urvashi Rautela (born 25 February 1994) is an Indian actress, model and beauty pageant titleholder who predominantly works in Hindi cinema, Hindi and Telugu cinema, Telugu films. She gained prominence after winning the title of Miss Diva 2015 ...

, Miss Universe India 2012, withdrew due as she was underage and also the reigning Miss Tourism Queen of the Year International at that time.

Avianca Böhm Avianca Böhm (born 1 January 1990) is a South African-born New Zealand actress, model and former beauty pageant titleholder. Avianca Bohm was crowned “Miss New Zealand 2012″ by Priyani Puketapu (Miss New Zealand 2011) at the grand finale ...

, Miss Universe New Zealand 2012, was replaced by her first runner-up, Talia Bennett, due to citizenship issues. Isabella Ayuk, Most Beautigul Girl in Nigeria 2012, switched pageants with Damiete Charles Granville, Most Beautiful Girl in Nigeria Universe 2012, due to being overage at

Miss World Miss World is the oldest existing international beauty pageant. It was created in the United Kingdom by Eric Morley in 1951. Since his death in 2000, Morley's widow, Julia Morley, has co-chaired the pageant. Along with Miss Universe, Mi ...

Andrea Huisgen Andrea Huisgen Serrano (born 22 June 1990) is a German-Spanish model and beauty pageant titleholder who was crowned Miss España 2011, the official representative to Miss Universe 2012. Andrea studied Law and works as a model in Barcelona. Born ...

, Miss Spain 2011, was unable to participate as the

Miss Spain The Miss Spain (Spanish: Miss España) is a national beauty pageant in Spain that selects Spanish representatives to compete in three of the big four major international beauty pageants: the Miss Universe, Miss World, and Miss International co ...

organization was bankrupt, and the license was awarded to a new organization called Miss Universe Spain. Although the rights had changed, Huisgen was allowed to compete having changed contracts. This contest saw the debuts of Gabon and Lithuania, and the returns of Bulgaria, Ethiopia, Namibia, and Norway. Bulgaria, Ethiopia, and Namibia last competed in

Miss Universe 2009 Miss Universe 2009 was the 58th Miss Universe pageant, held at the Imperial Ballroom in Atlantis Paradise Island, Nassau, The Bahamas on August 23, 2009. At the end of the event, Dayana Mendoza of Venezuela crowned Stefanía Fernández of ...

, while Norway last competed in

Miss Universe 2010 Miss Universe 2010 was the 59th Miss Universe pageant, held at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada, United States on August 23, 2010. At the end of the event, Stefanía Fernández of Venezuela crowned Ximena Navarrete of Mexic ...

. Egypt, Kazakhstan, Portugal, Slovenia, Turks and Caicos Islands, and the United States Virgin Islands withdrew. Aĭnur Tolyeuova of Kazakhstan withdrew as she was underage. Egypt, Portugal, Slovenia, Turks and Caicos, and the U.S. Virgin Islands withdrew after their respective organizations failed to hold a national competition or appoint a delegate.

Transgender women allowed to compete

Beginning with

Miss Universe 2013 Miss Universe 2013 was the 62nd Miss Universe pageant, held at the Crocus City Hall in Krasnogorsk, Moscow Oblast, Krasnogorsk, Moscow, Russia, on 9 November 2013. At the end of the event, Olivia Culpo of the United States crowned Gabriela Isl ...

, the Miss Universe Organization allowed

transgender A transgender (often shortened to trans) person has a gender identity different from that typically associated with the sex they were sex assignment, assigned at birth. The opposite of ''transgender'' is ''cisgender'', which describes perso ...

women to compete, following the consultation with the

GLAAD GLAAD () is an American non-governmental media monitoring organization. Originally founded as a protest against defamatory coverage of gay and lesbian demographics and their portrayals in the media and entertainment industries, it has since ...

Organization. The changes in the rules came after Jenna Talackova, a transgender woman competing at Miss Universe Canada 2012, was reinstated, having been removed from the pageant. Her removal was because she "did not meet the requirements to compete". A month after her removal, the organization allowed Talackova to compete provided that "she meets the legal gender recognition requirements of Canada, and the standards established by other international competitions." Talackova reached the top 12, and was one of the four contestants to win the Miss Congeniality award. Six years after the pageant rules were changed,

Ángela Ponce Ángela María Ponce Camacho (born 18 January 1991) is a Spanish model and beauty pageant titleholder who won Miss Universe Spain 2018. Ponce made history on 29 June 2018 as the first openly transgender woman to be crowned Miss Spain. She repres ...

of Spain made history at

Miss Universe 2018 Miss Universe 2018 was the 67th Miss Universe pageant, held at the Impact, Muang Thong Thani, Impact Arena in Pak Kret, Nonthaburi, Thailand, on 17 December 2018. At the conclusion of the event, Demi-Leigh Tebow, Demi-Leigh Nel-Peters of Sout ...

as the first transgender contestant to compete at Miss Universe.

Results

Placements

Special awards

Best National Costume

Pageant

Format

As with

Miss Universe 2011 Miss Universe 2011 was the 60th Miss Universe pageant, held at the Vibra São Paulo, Credicard Hall in São Paulo, Brazil on 12 September 2011. At the end of the event, Ximena Navarrete of Mexico crowned Leila Lopes (Miss Universe), Leila Lopes ...

, fifteen semifinalists were chosen through the preliminary competition, that was composed of the swimsuit and evening gown competitions, and closed-door interviews. Internet voting was still being implemented, with fans being able to vote for another delegate to advance into the semifinals, making the number of semifinalists sixteen. The winner of the fan vote was not revealed during the final telecast. The sixteen semifinalists competed in the swimsuit competition, narrowing them down to ten. The ten then competed in the evening gown competition, and were narrowed down to five. The five finalists competed in the question and answer round and the final look.

Selection committee

Preliminary competition

* Carlos Anaya – Host for My Lifestyle Extra * Beverly Frank – Executive Vice-president for Business Affairs for

19 Entertainment 19 Entertainment Inc. is a producer of entertainment properties for television with a focus on music owned by Sony Pictures Television through its nonfiction division. Founded by Simon Fuller in London in 1985, the company co-produced '' Pop Ido ...

* Duane Gazi – International scout with the

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* Michael Greenwald – Vice-President of Talent at Don Buchwald & Associates * Jimmy Nguyen – Prominent entertainment and new media lawyer * Corinne Nicolas – President of the

* Amy Sadowsky – Senior Vice-President of Public Relations for Planet Holywood International *

Crystle Stewart Crystle Stewart Sebrechts ( Stewart) (born September 20, 1981) is an American actress and beauty pageant titleholder. Stewart began her acting career in 2011, when she played real estate agent Leslie Morris on the OWN/ TBS comedy-drama televisi ...

–

Miss USA 2008 Miss USA 2008 was the 57th Miss USA pageant, held at The AXIS in Paradise, Nevada, on April 11, 2008. At the conclusion of the final night of competition, Crystle Stewart of Texas was crowned the winner by outgoing titleholder Rachel Smith of T ...

from

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

Final telecast

* Nigel Barker – Fashion photographer and the host of The Face *

Diego Boneta Diego Andrés González Boneta (born 29 November 1990) is a Mexican actor, producer and singer. He gained wider recognition after starring in ''Rock of Ages (2012 film), Rock of Ages'' (2012) alongside Tom Cruise and in the Netflix biographical ...

– Singer, actor and songwriter from Mexico *

Scott Disick Scott Michael Disick (born May 26, 1983) is an American media personality and socialite widely known for his role as a main cast member on ''Keeping Up with the Kardashians'' and its spinoffs. Disick's popularity on ''Keeping Up with the Kardas ...

– Businessman, entrepreneur and reality star of

Keeping Up With the Kardashians ''Keeping Up with the Kardashians'' (often abbreviated ''KUWTK'') is an American reality television series which focused on the personal and professional lives of the Kardashian family, Kardashian–Jenner Stepfamily, blended family. It aired ...

* Brad Goreski – Fashion stylist and reality star of

It's a Brad, Brad World ''It's a Brad, Brad World'' is an American reality documentary television series on Bravo. The series debuted on January 12, 2012. On August 29, 2012, Bravo announced that the series has been renewed for a second season which debuted on March 6 ...

Masaharu Morimoto is a Japanese chef, best known as an Iron Chef on the Japanese TV cooking show ''Iron Chef'' and its spinoff ''Iron Chef America''. He is also known for his unique style of presenting food. Career Morimoto was born in Hiroshima, where he rece ...

– Chef and star of

Iron Chef is a Japanese television cooking show produced by Fuji Television. The series, which premiered on October 10, 1993, is a stylized cook-off featuring guest chefs challenging one of the show's resident "Iron Chefs" in a timed cooking battle buil ...

and

Iron Chef America ''Iron Chef America'' is an American cooking show based on Fuji Television's ''Iron Chef'', and is the second American adaptation of the series, following the failed ''Iron Chef USA'' that aired in 2001. The show is produced by Food Network, wh ...

from Japan *

Ximena Navarrete Jimena "Ximena" Navarrete Rosete (; born February 22, 1988) is a Mexican actress, TV host, model and beauty queen who was crowned Miss Universe 2010. She was previously named as Nuestra Belleza México 2009. She became the second Miss Univers ...

–

from Mexico *

Pablo Sandoval Pablo Emilio Sandoval Reyes (born August 11, 1986) is a Venezuelan-American professional baseball third baseman for the Staten Island FerryHawks of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball. He has previously played in Major League Baseball ...

– Professional baseball player from Venezuela *

Lisa Vanderpump Lisa Jane Vanderpump (born 15 September 1960) is an English television personality and actress. She initially gained fame as a main cast member on ''The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills'' from 2010 until 2019. Vanderpump parlayed her ''Housewiv ...

– Reality star of

The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills ''The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills'' (abbreviated as ''RHOBH'') is an American reality television series which has been broadcast on Bravo since October 14, 2010. Developed as the sixth installment of '' The Real Housewives'' franchise, i ...

Kerri Walsh Jennings Kerri Lee Walsh Jennings (born August 15, 1978) is an American professional beach volleyball player, three-time Olympic gold medalist, and a one-time Olympic bronze medalist. She is the beach volleyball leader in career victories as of 2016 hav ...

– Professional beach volleyball player and triple gold medalist in

Summer Olympics The Summer Olympic Games, also known as the Summer Olympics or the Games of the Olympiad, is a major international multi-sport event normally held once every four years. The inaugural Games took place in 1896 in Athens, then part of the King ...

Contestants

Eighty-nine contestants competed for the title.

Notes

References

External links

Miss Universe official website
{{Miss Universe countries and territories 2012 beauty pageants

2012 2012 was designated as: *International Year of Cooperatives *International Year of Sustainable Energy for All Events January *January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins. * January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...

2012 in the United States Beauty pageants in the United States 2012 in Nevada December 2012 in the United States Zappos Theater