Miss Universe 2018 Winner: Philippines’ Catriona Gray takes home the crown

Philippines Catriona Gray claimed the Miss Universe crown for 2018 on Monday, beating contestants from 93 other countries in the 67th edition of the beauty pageant that was held in Bangkok.

The 24-year-old Filipina-Australian, Catriona Gray, entered her first pageant at the age of 5 and moved to the United States to pursue music at the Berklee College of Music, Boston, Massachusetts, according to a report in the Newsweek.

24-year-old Catriona Gray becoming the fourth Filipina to bring home the coveted title.

Catriona Gray received her crown from last year’s winner Demi-Leigh Nel-Peters of South Africa. The ‘Top 5’ who proceeded to the Q&A section of the event included Catriona Gray (Miss Philippines), Kiara Ortega (Miss Puerto Rico), Tamaryn Green (Miss South Africa), Sthefany Gutierrez (Miss Venezuela) and H’Hen Nie (Miss Vietnam). 

The winner was picked by an all-female board of judges which included Colombian-American CEO Liliana Gil Valletta, Janaye Ingram, mold planner Monique Lhuillier, previous Miss Universe champs Michelle McLean and Bui Simon, Iman Oubou, and Richelle Singson-Michael.

The pageant was  facilitated by Steve Harvey for the third straight year and model Ashley Graham at the Impact Arena in Bangkok, Thailand. The global event also featured Grammy-winning RnB artist Ne-Yo performance.

The current year's pageant was praised for its inclusivity and decent variety. Spain's Angela Ponce  made history as the pageant’s first transgender contestant, and Rosa Montezuma spoke to Panama as its first indigenous Miss Universe contestant.