PAGEANT Circle

Choi Soon-hwa recently created a buzz in the pageant community when she appeared as the oldest contestant vying for Miss Universe Korea 2024. The 81-year-old senior model who walked her first runway in her 70s made history as she competes alongside more than 30 others in the upcoming national competition. If she wins this year's Miss Universe Korea, she will be the oldest Korean representative and contestant in the 73-year history of the Miss Universe pageant. The Miss Universe Korea 2024 final will be held on September 30 and the winner will head to Mexico for Miss Universe 2024 this November. Age restrictions were recently removed by the organizers to align with the new rules of the Miss Universe Organization (MUO) that any woman, regardless of marital status, from age 18 can compete. View this post on Instagram A post shared by 미스유니버스코리아 (@missuniversekor) Photos: Choi Soon-hwa, Miss Universe Korea / Instagram

Kim So-yoon was crowned Miss Universe Korea 2023 in a national competition that took place last August 27 in Seoul. The 28-year-old beauty from Gyeongnam succeeded last year's titleholder Hanna Kim and will represent Korea at the 72 Miss Universe (Miss Universe 2023) in El Salvador this November. Over 30 contestants took part in this year's glittering event which was hosted at the Walkerhill Hotels & Resorts. Korea has yet to win the Miss Universe title since joining the prestigious pageant for the first time in 1954. Its highest achievement so far was first runner-up in 1988 with Jang Yoon-jeong. The country's last placement was third runner-up in 2007 with Honey Lee. Meet the new Miss Universe Korea: View this post on Instagram A post shared by 박정아 (@missuniversekorea1) Photos: Miss Universe Korea / Instagram

Miss Universe Korea 2022 Hanna Kim will wear a hanbok inspired by the beautiful sunset of Korea at the 71st Miss Universe pageant. The hanbok, a traditional Korean clothing characterized by vibrant colors, symbolic patterns, and geometric structure, is an important part of Korean culture. Koreans wear it on special occasions and holidays. Designed by W Hanbok and completed with traditional accessories by Naschenka , Hanna's national costume consists of 27 layers of skirts reflecting the colorful skies of Korea at sunset. As hanbok is called the clothes of the wind, each layer moves along with the movement to create the most unique and gorgeous mixture of colors. The true beauty of the hanbok is portrayed by elegant lines created throughout the garment and the different lines created with the movement display the art of traditional hanbok. Hanna will showcase her national costume during the 71st Miss Universe edition at the New Orleans Morial Convention Center in New Orleans, Louis

After arriving back in Korea, the newly crowned Miss Earth 2022 Mina Sue Choi was bashed online for one reason — she came home with her international crown placed in a paper bag. Pageant fans paid attention to her arrival video posted on social media and were quick to criticize her including the Miss Earth organization for not placing the precious crown in an appropriate box. Not new to many, the original Miss Earth crown which is made of precious gems signifying the Earth's resources stays with the organization — the winner travels with a replica. While many defended the Korean beauty queen, the "crown in a paper bag" situation did not escape the rabid online bashers from noticing. Mina went to online to publicly address the most talked about issue in a comment. She clarified the crown was only a replica that she just received before leaving the Philippines. Worried she might drop it while hand carrying, she decided to place it in a paper bag along with fabric to protect

Almost a week after her historic win at Miss Earth 2022 in the Philippines, Korea's Mina Sue Choi has returned to her home country. Before leaving Manila, she went to social media to share her first post after winning her title. She said: "It's been a few days now, but I still can't believe it. I think this is the first time in my life that so many people congratulated me and rejoiced with me." Slaying a simple look with dark pants, a white top, and a leather jacket, the beauty queen arrived at Incheon International Airport on Sunday, December 4 carrying the iconic Miss Earth crown and the official Miss Earth sash across her chest. Following weeks of hectic pageant activities, Mina will take a rest before she embarks on a world tour promoting the Miss Earth advocacy for the environment by January 2023. Miss Earth 2022 final was held on November 29 at Okada Manila where the Korean beauty beat over 80 other contestants from around the world to win her country's

Mina Sue Choi of Korea bested over 80 other competitors to win Miss Earth 2022 in a glittering competition held on Tuesday, November 29 at Cove Manila, Okada Manila in the Philippines. The 24-year-old communication student succeeded Destiny Wagner of Belize and became her country's first-ever Miss Earth winner. She also bagged three gold medals for the swimsuit, beach wear, and long gown competition, and one bronze for resort wear. Australia's Sheridan Mortlock, Palestine's Nadeen Ayoub, and Colombia's Andrea Aguilera finished in the Top 4 and were awarded the elemental titles Miss Earth - Air, Water, and Fire, respectively. The Top 8 were Daphné Nivelles of Belgium, Merel Hendriksen of the Netherlands, Paulina Avilés of Puerto Rico, and Sakhile Dube of Zimbabwe while Jéssica Pedroso of Brazil, Sheyla Ravelo of Cuba, Esther Ajayi of Nigeria and Maria Rosado of Portugal were the rest of the Top 12. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Miss Ear

Lee Seung-hyun, a 23-year-old economics student at Korea University was crowned Miss Korea 2022 in a glittering final held on Wednesday, October 26 at the Blue Square in Yongsan-gu, Seoul. Yoo Si-eun, 25, a student of aviation services, and Kim Go-eun, 22, a student of aviation and aeronautical engineering, were in second and third places, respectively. Out of 54 regional winners, only 30 finalists were selected to take part in the 66th edition of the national pageant. This year's winners are expected to represent Korea at Miss Earth 2023 in Vietnam and Miss International 2023 in Japan. Meet the new Miss Korea: View this post on Instagram A post shared by 이승현 (@is.hyun_) Photos: Miss Korea , Lee Seung-hyun / Instagram RELATED POSTS: Miss International Korea 2022 is Kim Su-jin SPOTLIGHT: Meet Hanna Kim, Miss Universe Korea 2022

Kim Su-jin, a 25-year-old fashion design graduate and broadcaster from Daegu will represent Korea at Miss International 2022 in Japan. Prior to being appointed as Miss International Korea 2022, she was named first runner-up during last year's Miss Korea pageant. She also has just recently relinquished her reign as Miss Gyeongbuk 2021. Following a 2-year break due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the 60th Miss International edition will take place at the Tokyo Dome City Hall on Tuesday, December 13. Since Korea's debut at the Japan-based international pageant in 1960, it has yet to win the coveted title. The country's highest placements so far were two first runner-up finishes in 2000 and 2009. Meet the new Miss International Korea: View this post on Instagram A post shared by 김수진 (@ksjinie_) Photos: @thinkaboutchu / Kim Su-jin / Instagram

Korea will be represented at the 71st Miss Universe pageant by Hanna Kim. The 27-year-old model currently based in New York City was appointed as Miss Universe Korea 2022 last April. She was the first runner-up during last year's national competition. Apart from modeling, Hanna is a linguist and interpreter, who specialized in clinical trials. She is also a skilled classical ballet dancer. "Words cannot describe how honored I am to be representing Korea at the 71st edition of Miss Universe," she shared on social media. "As Miss Universe is the representation of empowerment and confidence, I wish I will also become a member of this community that empowers the women around the globe," she added. The 71st Miss Universe pageant is expected to be held in the first quarter of 2023. Photos: Save Hannah Studio , Hanna Kim / Instagram

Tara Hong was crowned Miss World Korea 2021 at the spectacular virtual event held last October 18. The online event was shown on LG U Plus which has 13 million users. The 23-year-old UC Berkeley University student and K pop idol singer said: "Being a representative requires courage, faith, and empathy. It’s a duty of honor as I will be representing almost 52 million Koreans, and that’s not including those across the globe." "Until the final competition, I plan to spend some quality time deepening my understanding of the world, listening to the voices of my country, and reflecting on my own values in life,” she added. Tara succeeds Ji-Yeon Lim and will now prepare to represent Korea at the 70th Miss World pageant to be held in San Juan, Puerto Rico this December. Photos: Miss World