New format

 

Miss Universe changes show format for health and safety reasons

By Earl D.C. Bracamonte

As the Miss Universe 2020 closed-door rehearsals continue, the grapevine has been agog with the news that the elimination round will do away with the continental groupings and that there will be no opening statements like those in the 2018 and 2019 editions. This is because the MUO wants to do away with the sharing of the same microphone when the semifinalists do their individual speeches. 

This would only mean that the twenty selected delegates from the judges scores in the panel interview and preliminaries are those who not only caught their attention with impeccable communication skills but also those with relatable and confident personas. The only other girl who would by-pass this strict scrutiny is the winner of the highest online votes cast by fans worldwide.

After the 21 semifinalists are announced, they will compete in the swimsuit round, wearing custom made swimwear from official sponsor Ema Savahl. Since the bikini lines this year are quite skimpy and revealing, physical proportions with lengthy extremities and powerful pasarela techniques will shine in this elimination round. 

Those who will be called in the Top 10 will compete wearing evening gowns of their choice. From there, the number will be trimmed down to the final five where they will now display supremacy in answering the final question.

MUO president Paula Shugart greeted the candidates in three other languages at the beginning of rehearsals.  She greeted the girl's in French (Bonjour!), Filipino (Mabuhay!), and Thai (Sawasdee kap!) to cheers and applause from everybody. The delegates commenced the 6-hour rehearsal with a dance routine for the final show's production number.

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In the afternoon, the girls dressed down in white tees and jeans for the Smile Train event reigning queen Zozibini Tunzi. Miss Universe 2020 Rabiya Mateo displayed a colorful message on social media that read, "Changing the world, one smile at a time."

Meanwhile, Miss Universe Panama 2020 Carmen Jaramillo is the first candidate whose slip was captured on camera. She tripped while taking a video, walking backwards, of adoring fans that lined the route to the Smile Train event. The Panaman beauty simply collected herself as if nothing happened.

When dusk fell, the candidates glammed up for a night in town. The girls were divided in four groups with some going to a sports bar while others to dining spots like La Vendetta and Brio. Rabiya, who looked elegant in a sequined dress with an uneven hemline, was in the latter restaurant with Poland's Natalia Pigula, Singapore's Bernadette Belle Ong, and USA's Asya Branch. 

The lines of Rabiya's back-revealing outfit is reminiscent of Megan Young's winning gown but without the bustle at the hemline, as hers had an uneven design. The Filipino beauty recently broke the 914K followers mark on her Instagram account.

US-based Filipino fashion designer Kirsten Regalado, who has created dresses for two or three candidates, have answered the call of Miss Universe Myanmar 2020 Thuzar Wint Lwin for dresses to wear in the pageant, as she lost her baggage in transit to Florida. The two other persons who answered the distress call were Colombia's national director Natalie Ackermann and Vietnam's goodlooking national director Tran Viet Bao Hoang.

However, despite the widespread rumor in the change of format, the Miss Universe has yet to confirm this piece of news. What I've learned though, early on, is that - in whatever competition format one joins in, may it be a beauty pageant, talent search, or sporting events - the constant, unwritten criterion that determines a victorious outcome is 100% showmanship. It is that all-encompassing attribute that never takes anything for granted, and never leaves a single stone unturned until the desired result has been attained.