The Saudi Arabian government's alleged involvement in the Miss Universe Organization's 2024 pageant, which, if confirmed, would have been the Middle Eastern nation's first-ever, is being contested by the organization, which describes the accusations as "false and misleading."
"Any such claims are false and misleading, as no selection process has been conducted in Saudi Arabia," the pageant stated in a statement that was posted on its official website and given to CNN.
The statement went on, "We are currently going through a rigorous vetting process qualifying a potential candidate to be awarded the franchise and assigned national director, even though Saudi Arabia is not yet among those countries fully confirmed (as) participating this year." Saudi Arabia won't be able to participate in our esteemed contest unless everything is finalized and approved by our committee.
Saudi Arabian model and seasoned beauty queen Rumy al-Qahtani stated on social media on March 24 that she was "honored" to be competing in the Miss Universe pageant and mentioned that her apparent selection was a first for her native country. The posts were shared on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok, among other platforms. She was pictured in the post sporting a glitzy tiara, an evening gown covered in sequins, and a sash emblazoned with the title "Miss Universe Saudi Arabia."
Al-Qahtani's announcement went viral on social media and in news articles; even though the Miss Universe competition is currently disputing its validity, it is still present on her social media sites. (Al-Qahtani did not address the matter in videos that have been posted on her TikTok page since the pageant's statement was made public.)
A representative for Miss Universe told CNN, "We don't know why Miss Rumy al-Qahtani declared her candidacy, but she will have to go through the same selection process as every other candidate if she wants to compete in the Saudi Arabia pageant."
It was not possible to contact Al-Qahtani for comment.According to the pageant's statement, more than 100 different nations will be represented at the Miss Universe competition in 2024, which takes place in September in Mexico. This year's Miss Universe competition will be the first to not have an upper age limit; in prior years, candidates had to be between the ages of 18 and 28.
With the national director and board of Miss Universe Persia having been ratified in recent weeks, this year will also see the launch of a new "cultural heritage pageant" inside the Miss Universe system. The Miss Universe spokeswoman confirmed that the winner of the Miss Universe Persia pageant, which is accessible to women "of Persian descent" and the Persian diaspora, "will join all other delegates from all over the world in the Miss Universe competition to be held in Mexico later this year"./BGNES