Nicaragua’s Sheynnis Palacios has been announced as the winner of the Miss Universe competition. The event took place on Saturday night in San Salvador, El Salvador.
Sheynnis looked majestic, said observers in a bejewelled off-shoulder gown. The body-hugging outfit had shimmery beads with structured shoulders and was studded with delicate crystals throughout. What added a stylish edge to the exquisite gown was the plunging sweetheart neckline featuring sheer details and the crystal-encrusted full-sleeve gloves she wore.
Adding another dramatic factor to the look was a blue satin cape which she carried over the shoulders. Her minimally glam makeup had shimmer details but was subtle enough to let the grandeur of her gown shine.
Sheynnis, a 23-year-old communicologist, wants to promote mental health after suffering debilitating bouts of anxiety herself.
Miss Universe’s Instagram page shared a post about the winner.
It read, “Hello Miss Universe. Sheynnis Palacios is a 23-year-old mental health activist and audiovisual producer from Managua, Nicaragua. She usually prefers to be behind the camera, but she’s come out of the wings because she believes in finding solutions for as many of the world’s problems as she can.
“As a problem-solving kind of person, she put herself through the communications program at her university by working in her mom’s snack business. When the business faltered in an economic crisis, her mother migrated north to find a better job, and she became the economic and emotional support for her grandmother and young brother.”
Furthermore, Miss Thailand, Anntonia Porsild, was the first runner-up, and Miss Australia, Moraya Wilson, was the second runner-up. It was also revealed that a total of 84 women competed in the 72nd edition of the competition.
Sheynnis impressed the judges with her answer to the question about whose shoes she would like to spend a year in. She chose Mary Wollstonecraft, an 18th-century English writer and philosopher known for advocating women’s rights.
She also said that she wants to work to close the salary gap between the genders so that women can work in any area.
This year’s Miss Universe event was held in El Salvador for the first time since 1975. President Nayib Bukele highlighted the positive changes in the country under his administration, focusing on improved safety.
Until relatively recently El Salvador had been overrun by criminal gangs, but in a stunning turnaround the government rounded up and imprisoned thousands of gangsters, completing changing the atmosphere of the country.
“El Salvador has changed for the better, and we have shown it again,” Bukele said Saturday night.
“Miss Universe has given us the opportunity to show the world what we are capable of. Thank you for choosing to be part of El Salvador’s rebirth.”
Bukele is running for reelection despite constitutional term limits and is widely popular for his crackdown on the country’s gangs. But he has faced international criticism for eroding checks and balances on his power and not respecting human rights, reported news agency AP.
Sources: NDTV, Instagram, CNN, Miss Universe.
