New Miss USA and Teen USA 2020 Crowned
L-R: Miss USA 2020, Asia Branch and Miss Teen USA 2020, Ki’ilani Arruda
It was an exciting weekend for pageantry in the United States.
As the delegates of Miss USA and Miss Teen USA 2020 competed for the coveted Mouawad crown.
This year the competitions were held at Elvis Presley's Graceland in Memphis, Tennessee.
Miss Teen USA 2020
Teen USA finals took place on Saturday, 7 November.
The contestants competed in Activewear, Evening Gown/Final Question & Answer.
Pageant blogs, influencers and gurus predicted that Oregon would be the winner.
But despite Oregon being a standout and fan fave, it was 18-year-old Ki'ilani Arruda of Hawaii who walked away with the title.
She was crowned by her predecessor Kaliegh Garris, Miss Teen USA 2019.
The Top 16 contestants were determined by the preliminary competition that was held on Friday, 6 November.
Miss Teen USA 2020 Top 16:
Arizona
Arkansas
California
Connecticut
Georgia
Hawaii
Louisiana
Maine
Nebraska
New Jersey
North Carolina
Ohio
Oklahoma
Oregon
South Carolina
Tennessee
After watching the contestants compete in Activewear and Evening Gown the judges chose their Top 5.
Miss Teen USA 2020 Top 5:
Oregon
Georgia
Hawaii
Nebraska
Louisiana
The Top 5 contestants each answered an interview question before moving on to answer their final question of the night.
Miss Hawaii’s final question: What has experiencing a global pandemic taught you about life?
Her response: Well...of course this global pandemic is very unprecedented and has taught me a lot about life. For me, especially, it has taught me to appreciate my family. I got to spend so much time with my family, my little sister and my little brother I love them dearly and I know that soon in Spring I will be going off to college and I won't have those precious moments with them. So really, it's just to cherish those around me and really just so honourable that I get to represent my home of Hawaii, so just being at home is so wonderful.
Miss Teen USA 2020 Runner-Ups:
1st Runner Up - Miss Oregon
2nd Runner Up - Miss Georgia
3rd Runner Up - Miss Nebraska
4th Runner Up - Miss Louisiana
The Miss Congeniality award went to Miss Washington.
According to the Miss Hawaii USA website, Ki'ilani is studying Molecular and Cellular Biology on a Pre-Med Track and minoring in Spanish at the University of Puget Sound.
Miss USA 2020 Results
On Monday, 9 November, Miss USA 2019, Cheslie Kryst crowned her successor live on FYI.
The prestigious title of Miss USA 2020 went to Miss Mississippi, 22-year-old, Asya Branch.
Aysa is the first African American to represent the state at the Miss USA pageant.
This also marked the first time that a Mississippi contestant won the title.
The contestants competed in Swimwear, Evening Gown, Final Question & Answer as well as a Final Statement.
The Miss USA pageant was highly anticipated.
Social media was abuzz with predictions and analysis from the preliminary competition which took place on Friday, 6 November.
Miss USA 2020 Top 16:
Alabama
California
District of Columbia
Georgia
Hawaii
Idaho
Illinois
Indiana
Louisiana
Mississippi
Missouri.
Oklahoma
Nevada
New Jersey
New York
Ohio
Some pageant fans were surprised that Miss Massachusetts did not advance as she was a stand out from the preliminaries.
The Top 16 competed in swimwear which gave the judges a chance to narrow it down to a Top 10.
Miss USA Top 10:
Alabama
California
Hawaii
Idaho
Illinois
Indiana
Mississippi
New Jersey
New York
Oklahoma
These Top 10 then competed in the Evening Gown segment where it was then cut down to a Top 5.
Things got even more interesting because a huge fan fave did not make it into the finals.
Miss USA 2020 Top 5:
Alabama
Idaho
Indiana
Mississippi
Oklahoma
Many fans were shook that Miss New York did was not select to be the finals as she was predicted to be one of the last two standing.
Alabama and India were two finalists that very few saw coming.
Each of the Top 5 were asked a different question.
Miss Mississippi's final question: Our country is more polarized than any other time in recent memory. In your opinion what must be done to bring our nation back together.
Her response: I think this is an issue of trust. we've lost trust in the systems that seem to keep our country running. From the media to business, to our government and it's all about restoring that trust and coming together and working together to heal and trust in these systems if we want to continue to be the greatest nation, we're going to have to set a better example.
The final 5 were also tasked with a final statement.
Miss Mississippi's final statement was on Gun Laws.
Her statement: As someone who grew up in a home with guns I learned at an early age how to load, how to fire and gun safety and I think that education should be available to everyone. I believe that we should require people to pass training and safety course before they're allowed to purchase a gun and before receiving a permit. I think it's important that we not ban guns because obviously, people will find a way to get what they want anyway, but I think it's our second amendment right, we just need more safety surrounding that.
Miss USA 2020 Runner-Ups:
1st Runner-Up - Idaho
2nd Runner-Up - Oklahoma
3rd Runner-Up - Indiana
4th Runner-Up - Alabama
Aysa will represent the United States at the Miss Universe pageant.