Miss World announced its new queen, Krystyna Pišková of the Czech Republic, in a glittering ceremony. But viewers are furious that their favorite Miss Botswana, Lesego Tchomo, was given a snub.
The 71st International Competition was held on Saturday, March 9th at the Jio International Convention Center in India.
Meanwhile, South Africa's Claude Mashego finished in the top 40.
Miss World winner: Viewers scream it's terrible
On social media, the new Miss World queen, Krystyna Pišková of the Czech Republic, was hardly greeted by the winners.
The 23-year-old law student and model beat out over 100 contestants from around the world to take home the crown.
During the qualifying stage, women competed in categories such as fitness, beauty, talent, and speech. The participants who made it to the Top 40 were reduced to Top 12, Top 8, and Top 4.
In the final stage, thought-provoking questions were posed to the women, including Miss Lebanon and Miss Trinidad and Tobago.
Many viewers of the pageant, run by CEO Julia Morley, were unimpressed that the fan-favorite Miss Botswana was not crowned for her beauty and intelligence.
Others said Krysztiana bore a striking resemblance to her blonde-haired, blue-eyed predecessor, Poland's Karolina Bielawska.
On Instagram, viewers flooded the comments section of the Miss World winner's post, accusing the pageant of “racism” and “discrimination.”
@manuelsbeauty_gh: “It's complete rubbish. Botswana should have won.”
@thembar_g: “This organization is once again proving its racism. Africa might be better off relinquishing its license.”
@Ray Helm Buki: “This was a robbery in broad daylight. Miss Czech could be the twins of last year's blonde and blue-eyed winner. But even she knows deep down that the crown should have gone to Botswana. Now I know.”
@amantle_g: “Another Barbie doll”
Here are some reactions from X.
last african winner
Meanwhile, the last African beauty queen to win Miss World was South African Lauren Strauss in 2014.
In 1958 and 1974, SA's Penny Colan and Anneline Kriel won the title.
The only other African countries to have won the title so far are Egypt and Nigeria.