India’s Hamaaz Sandhu made history on December 13 when she was crowned Miss Universe 2021 at the 70th edition of the beauty pageant held in Eilat, Israel, beating contestants from 80 countries 21 years after India last brought home the title. Harnaaz became the third Indian to win the title, after Sushmita Sen (1994) and Lara Dutta (2000). The Chandigarh-based actor-model, who is pursuing her master’s degree in public administration, was crowned by her predecessor Andrea Meza of Mexico, winner of the pageant in 2020.
This year’s competition marks the second Covid-era Miss Universe pageant. Israel’s borders were set to open to vaccinated tourists ahead of the main event this year, which would have allowed thousands of fans to attend.
But with the emergence of the new Omicron variant, the Israeli government shut its borders to foreigners two weeks before the competition, throwing travel plans and preparations into chaos. One contestant, Miss France, tested positive for the virus upon landing in Israel and had to quarantine — getting out just in time for the preliminary competition on Friday.
The pageant was also wrapped in another layer of political controversy, with some critics and countries calling for boycotts — as with previous international events hosted in Israel.
The South African government withdrew its support and called on Mswane to drop out, citing Israeli treatment of Palestinians, calling it “apartheid,” a charge Israel has vehemently denied. But Mswane — with the backing of the Miss South Africa organization — chose to travel to Israel and compete.
Other figures, including Miss Israel, Noa Cochva, responded with a common refrain heard from pageant organizers and contestants: Miss Universe should not be about politics.
Israel was one of the first countries to begin vaccinating its population and had reached a high vaccination rate by May this year, when the country was approached about hosting the December competition, according to a spokesperson from Israel’s Ministry of Tourism.
Credit : CNN
Picture Credit : Google
