CROATIA
Mia is the legit fierce goddess of beauty of this year's Miss Universe pageant, the type of beauty
that Trump would go head over heels with during his Miss Universe regime. Unfortunately, it can
never be the case anymore as his era is over and beauties such as Mia are almost nearly extinct
on the Miss Universe stage.
TANZANIA
Shubila has the makings of a supermodel! Her distinct features make her such a standout and
this is really important when faced with really tough competition in one of the best batch of
contestants in Miss Universe history. I wish the judges could quickly pick up on this and place
her accordingly.
INDONESIA
I am self-confessed hater turned admirer of Frederika. She has proven me wrong, once thinking
that she's just another spoiled teenager coming from an influential family who could buy her
anything, including her placement on everyone's list. She has grown on me seeing how genuinely
friendly and endearing she is to her fans and fellow contestants and being an animal welfare
advocate, and all these attributes will always be rewarded with good karma. You have a winner in
her, Indonesia, and I hope she'll make y'all proud.
HAITI
The other Gabriela! She is silently killing this competition. The afro, facial features, bone
structure and styling make her overall look really edgy. She is one of the biggest surprises who
we could expect in the finals.
PERU
Kelin puts up a very good fight with a sleek performance at the preliminaries and I observed
how she's always in competition mode even if the cameras aren't focused on her. She just has to
standout more to get noticed in this really tough batch.
USA
Putting Miss USA in every prediction list is already a giveaway because the Miss USA pageant
system is its reps' training ground, making Chelsie a formidable competition in this year's
pageant apart from having impressive credentials and a sculpted body of a disciplined beauty
queen.
NETHERLANDS
Sharon could be the pleasant surprise in the finals. There is this air of sensuality that surrounds
her and she's very comfortable in her own skin. She's definitely the type of person you'd hangout
with in an island or a nudist beach.
ALBANIA
Cindy is the type of beauty that is a casualty from this day and age in beauty pageants wherein
the competition is all about social media hype and popularity, and real beauty doesn't even
matter anymore. Nonetheless, I wouldn't be surprised if she makes it far in the competition just
by traditional beauty pageant standards alone.
SOUTH AFRICA
Sassy-Zozibini! It always seems that there's never a dull moment whenever she's around and this
translates in the way she moves and interact with everyone, especially the crowd and her fellow
contestants. She was great in her national pageant and was even better during preliminaries,
possibly securing her a firm spot in the finals.
FRANCE
My heart goes to Maeva after that unfortunate slip on the floor, but still all-smiles during that
quick recovery making the audience love her even more. I often say that Maeva is too good for
beauty pageants even Miss Universe, because her beauty, alone, could land her a big break in
Hollywood. She looks expensive and always red carpet ready. Just put on a good dress and the
cameras will go clicking again! She is simply in a league of her own.
INDIA
There is really something wrong with the pageant system or selection process if India won't
make the cut again this year. This country has been a hit or miss in Miss Universe in recent years,
but now that they've chosen an actual crown-worthy beauty, it's about time to put India back in
the finalists roster and reclaim their place as a powerhouse country in Miss Universe.
VIETNAM
Hoang was a sight to behold on stage. Her commanding presence sealed the deal for me.
Probably one of the most spotless performances during the preliminary round and I can't wait to
see more of Hoang Thuy so I hope she really makes the cut!
ICELAND
Birta has a really good story to tell enduring racial discrimination and surviving hate crimes, very
fitting for host city, Atlanta, that celebrates black pride. I have a feeling that once she makes it
to the questions and answer round, a related question would be asked of her and the rest will be
history!
KENYA
Stacy, in my opinion, is the best among the ebony beauties this year. With that Riri vibe and Tyra
Banks forehead, what more could we ask for? She is easily top 5 material, but then again, there
are several top five-worthy girls this year so I will just leave it to how she will continue to shine
until the finals night.
PUERTO RICO
As much as I'd like to say that Maddison is the total package fit for the title, she somehow
flatlined in the competition, but after seeing her performance, the Puerto Rican flare has always
been there after all and it just got ignited on stage during preliminaries. This brought back my
faith in her, enough to secure her for a finalist spot.
IRELAND
What better way to crown a Miss Universe than with crowning a NASA Datanaut 50 years after
the first man landed on the moon. Fig is surprisingly good on stage although Europeans normally
lack performance in Miss Universe and she has the brains to back it all up apart from making
history as the first NASA data analyst to compete in Miss Universe.
BRAZIL
My fascination with Julia can only come from me fantasizing about her having a buzz haircut,
that she'd actually look like my ultimate teenage crush, Mario Lopez. Aside from that, she lived
up to the hype since day one in Atlanta. Her pizzazz is just undeniable and her presence always
seem to illuminate an entire room, and evidently, the Miss Universe stage as well.
PHILIPPINES
The contestant with the toughest act to follow! Many were quick to judge her capabilities
especially on interviews, but she proved her critics wrong! She is so at ease when speaking and
there is just something in her that draws you more to her the more you listen and watch her. It's
almost like taking a chill pill and we can't get enough of it. She obliterates the competition even
if she wears the country sash of the current Miss Universe. Only haters could be in complete
denieal of this fact. Gazini is her own brand and she is not competing under anyone's shadow,
not even her behemoth predecessor, Catriona. A back-to-back victory for the Philippines is very
likely!
COLOMBIA
The untouchable. The Alpha Female. Colombia's sweet revenge from last year's non-placement.
There's just nothing but good words to describe Gabriela. She is packaged like the actual winner
and her stature is like she is the current Miss Universe titleholder already. Only the Mouawad
crown is missing on her head and she's good to go, ready to move to her NYC apartment.
THAILAND
The copycat (Copy-Catriona), and why not? It is always better to do things inspired by the winner
anyway, if that's what it takes to win. The more people talk about Paween, the more evident it is
that she is still a major threat in this competition. I don't mind if she's the chosen one or if people
want to put it that way based on the signs pointing to how favored she is to win, but she still
has to rightfully earn the title. What's even more daunting is her making it past the first cut from
a bevy of equally competitive girls especially after that average preliminary performance, but I
trust that her pleasing disposition could win the hearts of the judges. Thailand has been sending
strong contestants for this pageant and Paween is the most complete so far, so if she doesn't
bomb her answer in the finals, another title for Thailand is at hand!
Thank you for reading and may the most deserving contestant win!