India wins Miss Universe marked by politics and epidemic | Community

The victory of Indian Harnas Lane in the Miss Universe marked the end of the 70th edition of the beauty pageant held today in the Israeli city of Elat, and was marked by political controversy and uncertainty due to contagious restrictions.

At the age of twenty-one, with a height of 1.76 meters, polished English and an inspiring message for young women of the world, the new Miss Universe was very fond and tall, imposed on Nadia Ferreira from Paraguay. Second, Lalela Maswane of South Africa took third place.

Following in the footsteps of her mother, a professional actress, native of Chandigarh and her gynecologist, the young lady mentioned on many occasions that the Universe Miss Universe but women in the world should not hesitate to pursue their dreams.

“As a beauty contest, we want to reach out to every woman who sees us and believes they should be the leaders of their own lives,” the winner told a news conference after the gala, in which she stressed: “If we can, they can too.”

On the other hand, Lane defended restrictions in various parts of the world to prevent the progression of the disease and the compulsion of vaccination, saying “health should be paramount because in the end it is we.”

In the most intimate match, the presence of the South African participant among the finalists was astonishing, astonishing the Indian umpires who responded with confidence to his parade (including bathing suit and gala attire) on the catwalk. Questions asked.

One of the highlights of his performance was that presenter Steve Harvey asked him to imitate the sounds of animals and express his talent, to which he responded by meowing like a cat. When asked about this in the alley, he noted that “the only consensus people have on the beauty pageant is that it’s only beautiful, not that, being on stage yourself”.

In addition to the other two finalists, the winner went out of the way, with representatives from Colombia and the Philippines forming a team of five who reached the finals, and the other 75 competitors who attended today in the Israeli city of Elat.

A political rivalry

As is often the case in events of this magnitude in Israel, rivalry preceded political controversy.

In one of them, the South African participant – the third-place finisher – appeared in the contest and, due to the atrocities against the Palestinians, decided to “ignore the call of his country’s government to withdraw his country from Israel and not to associate with it.” “.

Critics of Israeli policy against the Palestinians have called for the event to be held as a way of looking away from the Israeli conflict.

On the other hand, the Israeli media and politicians celebrated the presence of representatives of Bahrain and Morocco, who, after normalizing diplomatic relations last year, saw the sign of a growing bond between these countries and Israel.

According to figures from the Ministry of Tourism, the Israeli government contributed NIS 6.5 million ($ 2 million) to the organization of the event, which officials hope will help boost tourism once the borders reopen. To improve the image of the country internationally.

Epidemic, again the protagonist

The Israeli government’s decision to veto the entry of tourists for two weeks to prevent the spread of the Omigron variant of the corona virus raised fears that the competition would be canceled early on, and irritated some by the exceptions granted to competitors and fans.

However, the main clue of the epidemic was felt in the stands, many of which are empty in the face of the absence of foreigners and the apparent apathy of the local public.

On the other hand, the success of India’s representative today, as the previous edition of the pageant was postponed last year, marks the end of the shortest reign in the history of Miss Universe after the coronation of Mexican Andrea Mesa. March this year.

Pablo Duer