Philippines' Pia Alonzo Wurtzbach has been crowned this year's winner of the 2015 Miss Universe pageant held at Planet Hollywood in Las Vegas on Sunday night, but not without controversy. After USA's Olivia Jordan was announced the 2nd runner-up, host Steve Harvey then erroneously announced that Miss Colombia, Ariadna Gutierrez, was the winner of this year's pageant competition.
POR SIEMPRE TU MISS UNIVERSO!! COLOMBIA !!!!!!! #misscolombia
A photo posted by Ariadna Gutierrez Arevalo (@gutierrezary) on Dec 21, 2015 at 12:00am PST
Harvey was forced to apologize and correct his announcement after Gutierrez had already been given the crown and the sash, according to TV Line. As proof of the error, the show's organizers flashed the result card, which showed that Miss Philippines was indeed the winner of the entire competition, according to The Philippine Daily Inquirer.
Twenty-seven-year-old Wurtzbach, an early fan favorite, bested 79 other hopefuls for the coveted beauty pageant crown. She also topped the global fan vote. When asked one final question as to why she should be the next Miss Universe, Wurtzbach answered: "I will use my voice to influence youth. I want to show the world that I am confidently beautiful with a heart," according to CNN Philippines.
Wurtzbach is now the third Filipino to win the coveted crown, following the footsteps of previous winners, Gloria Diaz, who was crowned in 1969, and Margie Moran, who won in 1973.
This is it! @missuniverse #MissUniverse #MissUniverso #ConfidentlyBeautiful ❤ A photo posted by Pia Alonzo Wurtzbach (@piawurtzbach) on Dec 20, 2015 at 3:45pm PST
