India triumphs at a Miss Universe marked by politics and pandemic

The triumph of the Indian Harnaaz Sandhu in Miss Universe put an end this Monday to the seventieth edition of the beauty contest, which took place in the Israeli city of Eilat, and was marked by political controversy and uncertainty due to the restrictions by the pandemic.

Twenty-one years old, 1.76 meters tall, with a polished English and an inspiring message for the young girls of the world, the new Miss Universe was one of the favorites and she lived up to her billing, winning over the Paraguayan Nadia Ferreira, who finished second, and the South African Lalela Mswane, who came in third.

An actress by profession, a native of the city of Chandigarh and with her gynecologist mother as a role model, the young woman remarked on multiple occasions that if she went on to become Miss Universe, the women of the world should not hesitate to pursue their dreams.

"As a beauty pageant we want to reach out to each and every woman who is looking up to us and hoping to be the leaders of their own lives," the winner said during a press conference after the gala, in which she insisted: "If we can, they can too."

On the other hand, Sandhu defended the restrictions in place in different parts of the world to halt the advance of the pandemic and the mandatory vaccination and pointed out that "health must be the priority, given that at the end of the day it is all we have".

In a very close competition, in which the presence of the South African participant among the finalists was a surprise, the Indian dazzled the judges both with her parades down the catwalk (including in swimsuit and ball gown) and with the confidence with which she answered the questions she was asked.

One of the peculiarities of her performance was the moment when the presenter, Steve Harvey, asked her to demonstrate her talent by imitating animal sounds, to which she responded by meowing like a cat. When asked about it, Sandhu mentioned that "one of the stereotypes people have about beauty pageants is that it's just about looking pretty, and it's not, it's about being yourself on stage".

In addition to the other two finalists, the winner left behind the representatives of Colombia and the Philippines, who made up the group of five that made the final cut, and the other 75 contestants who were present in the Israeli city of Eilat.

A politicized pageant 

As is often the case with events of this magnitude that take place in Israel, the competition was preceded by a series of controversies with political overtones.

One of these was the decision of the South African contestant - who finished third - to enter the competition and ignore the call of her country's government to withdraw and not to associate her country with Israel "because of the atrocities committed against the Palestinians".

Many critics of Israel's policy towards the Palestinians also raised their voices to the skies, considering that hosting this event is a way for Israel to avert its gaze from the conflict.

On the other hand, the presence of the representatives of Bahrain and Morocco was celebrated by the Israeli media and politicians, who saw it as a sign of the growing bond between these countries and Israel, following the normalization of diplomatic relations last year.

According to figures from the Ministry of Tourism, the Israeli government made a contribution of 6.5 million shekels (just over two million dollars) to the organization of the event, which the authorities hope will help increase tourism once the borders are reopened to foreigners and improve the country's image internationally. 

The pandemic, once again in the spotlight 

The Israeli government's decision two weeks ago to ban the entry of tourists to prevent the spread of the omicron variant of the coronavirus initially sparked fears that the competition would be cancelled and annoyance among some at the exceptions granted to contestants and fans.

The main trace of the pandemic, however, was perceived in the stands, several of which were empty due to the absence of foreigners and the apparent disinterest of the local public.

On the other hand, due to the postponement last year of the previous edition of the contest, the triumph of the representative of India marks the end of the shortest reign in the history of Miss Universe, after the coronation of the Mexican Andrea Meza in March of this year.