Iris Mittenaere, a 24-year-old dental student from Paris, was crowned following a three-hour show in the Philippines. Decked out in a gold-sequined gown Iris Mittenaere beat 12 other finalists to take the crown. As Miss Universe, she will be campaigning for dental and oral care around the world.
On the Miss Universe website, the student had said she wanted “to advocate for dental and oral hygiene” if she won, a task that is close to her heart. First and second runner-ups were Miss Haiti (Raquel Pelissier) and Miss Colombia (Andrea Tovar). The top finalists hailed from Kenya, Indonesia, Mexico, Peru, Panama, Colombia, Phillippines, Canada, Brazil, France, Haiti, Thailand and the U.S.
The annual pageant was held on Monday at the Mall of Asia Arena in Manila, Philippines, with 85 hopefuls participating. Host Steve Harvey joked on the show that he got the winner right this year, after last year’s snafu of getting it wrong. Rapper Flo Rida and R&B group Boys II Men provided entertainment. Botswana sent no representative yet again.
