Miss Grand International 2020

Miss Grand International 2020
Abena Appiah
Date27 March 2021
PresentersMatthew Deane
VenueDC Hall, Bangkok, Thailand
BroadcasterYoutube, Facebook Live
Entrants63
Placements21
Debuts
  • Crimea
Withdrawals
  • Armenia
  • Australia
  • Curacao
  • Estonia
  • Guadeloupe
  • Haiti
  • Lebanon
  • Latvia
  • Macau
  • Réunion
  • Romania
  • Ukraine
Returns
  • Argentina
  • Cambodia
  • England
  • Finland
  • Iran
  • Jamaica
  • Kenya
  • Kosovo
  • Laos
  • Scotland
  • Sri Lanka
  • South Korea
  • Uruguay
  • Wales
WinnerAbena Appiah
United States
Best National Costume
  • Ivana Batchelor, Guatemala
  • Ruri Saji, Japan
  • Patcharaporn Chantarapadit, Thailand
Best in SwinsuitAlaise Guedes, Brazil
Best Evening GownAngela Yuriar, Mexico
← 2019
2021 →
External videos
video icon Grand final coronation

Miss Grand International 2020 was the eighth Miss Grand International pageant, held on 27 March 2021, at DC Hall in Bangkok, Thailand.[1][2][3][4] It marked the first time in the pageant's history where a black woman won the crown.[5][6][7] Twenty-seven-year-old Abena Appiah was the first United States representative to win the title.[6][8] As was normal of the pageant, she was crowned by her immediate predecessor, Valentina Figuera of Venezuela,[9][10] and spent a year working as the organization's spokesperson in the campaign against all forms of conflict.[6][11]

Previously, the pageant was scheduled to be held in Venezuela on 25 October 2020, however, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the organization decided to postpone the event to 2021 and move the venue to Bangkok, Thailand.[12][13] After arriving in Thailand, each contestant had to quarantine in the country for two weeks before taking part in the pageant,[12][14] following Thailand's public health measures aiming to prevent and control the pandemic.[1] The further examination found two contestants had tested positive for COVID-19 during the quarantine period. Both were subsequently treated in the hospital until testing negative and were permitted to participate in the remaining activities of the pageant.[6][10][15][16]

The grand final of the pageant was hosted by Matthew Deane,[7] and featured 63 contestants.[2][17][18] In addition to crowning the winner, the representative of Myanmar, Han Lay, also took the stage during the final telecast to make a declaration against alleged atrocities committed by Myanmar's military in her home country and pleaded for urgent international aid amid the ongoing bloodshed.[17][19][20][21] Her statement caused the Myanmar military government to issue an arrest warrant against her,[22][23] leading her to apply for refugee asylum in Thailand with the support of the pageant organizer,[3][22][23] and she eventually immigrated to Canada for political asylum in late 2021.[24]

  1. ^ a b "Thai tourism officials welcome Miss Grand International 2020 contestants". Tourism Authority of Thailand. 17 March 2021. Archived from the original on 30 August 2021. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  2. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference philstar2 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ a b Luke Hunt (1 April 2021). "Miss Grand Myanmar to Speak for Her Country From Thailand". The Diplomat. Archived from the original on 24 June 2021. Retrieved 1 September 2021.
  4. ^ Ella Glover (28 March 2021). "Myanmar beauty pageant contestant pleads for international help to re-establish democracy". The Independent. Archived from the original on 28 March 2021.
  5. ^ Diana Cavagnaro (21 August 2021). "San Diego Swim Week debuts with luxury swimwear, shopping". La Jolla Village News. Archived from the original on 1 September 2021. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  6. ^ a b c d Earl D.C. Bracamonte (28 March 2021). "Miss USA is first Black contender to win Miss Grand International crown". The Philippine Star. Archived from the original on 2 May 2021. Retrieved 1 September 2021.
  7. ^ a b "Abena Appiah of USA crowned Miss Grand International 2020". The Times of India. 2 April 2021. Archived from the original on 3 April 2021. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  8. ^ "Myanmar's Han Lay stands for democracy at Miss Grand International 2020 finals show". Rappler. 28 March 2021. Archived from the original on 3 April 2021. Retrieved 1 September 2021.
  9. ^ Cite error: The named reference folha was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  10. ^ a b "2 Finalis Miss Grand International 2020 Sempat Positif Covid-19 di Thailand". Liputan 6 (in Indonesian). 28 March 2021. Archived from the original on 28 March 2021. Retrieved 1 September 2021.
  11. ^ Cite error: The named reference standard was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  12. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference jamaica was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  13. ^ Harry Rodríguez Caraballo (14 January 2021). "¡Oficial! Miss Grand International 2020-2021 se realizará en Tailandia". Metro TV (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 25 January 2021. Retrieved 14 February 2021.
  14. ^ Sarah Scott (12 May 2021). "NI beauty queen opens up about being diagnosed with MS aged 27". Belfast Live. Archived from the original on 12 May 2021. Retrieved 1 September 2021.
  15. ^ Cite error: The named reference cnnindo was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  16. ^ Earl D.C. Bracamonte (22 March 2021). "COVID-19 survivors make it to Miss Grand International swimsuit, preliminaries". The Philippine Star. Archived from the original on 1 September 2021. Retrieved 1 September 2021.
  17. ^ a b "Myanmar beauty queen speaks out against military coup". The Straits Times. 25 March 2021. Archived from the original on 4 June 2021. Retrieved 1 September 2021.
  18. ^ Cite error: The named reference kenh was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  19. ^ Cite error: The named reference reuters was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  20. ^ George Wright (5 April 2021). "The Myanmar beauty queen standing up to the military". BBC News. Archived from the original on 25 June 2021. Retrieved 1 September 2021.
  21. ^ "Miss Grand Myanmar Calls For Help". Bloomberg. 8 April 2021. Archived from the original on 1 September 2021. Retrieved 1 September 2021.
  22. ^ a b Earl D.C. Bracamonte (7 April 2021). "Miss Myanmar reportedly gets arrest warrant for Miss Grand International speech". The Philippine Star. Archived from the original on 9 July 2021. Retrieved 1 September 2021.
  23. ^ a b Robert Requintina (25 May 2021). "2 Myanmar beauty queens find refuge abroad, won't face prosecution". Manila Bulletin. Archived from the original on 31 May 2021. Retrieved 1 September 2021.
  24. ^ Cite error: The named reference imigrant was invoked but never defined (see the help page).