22 Dec 2015

Chaos reigns at Miss Universe pageant

8:00 am on 22 December 2015

This year's Miss Universe pageant has ended in chaos in Las Vegas, after the wrong contestant was named the winner.

Miss Universe 2014 Paulina Vega, centre, removes the crown from Miss Colombia Ariadna Gutierrez, left, to give it to Miss Philippines Pia Alonzo Wurtzbach.

Miss Universe 2014 Paulina Vega, centre, removes the crown from Miss Colombia Ariadna Gutierrez, left, to give it to Miss Philippines Pia Alonzo Wurtzbach. Photo: AFP

Miss Colombia had already been crowned when the host, the American comedian Steve Harvey, returned to the stage to reveal the real winner was actually Miss Philippines.

For a few awkward moments, the two women stood side by side as Harvey apologised for his error and the crown was swapped over.

Mr Harvey called it an "honest mistake".

To show it had been a mistake, he held up a card which clearly laid out the second and first runners-up and the winner.

That left some observers scratching their heads over how the mistake could have happened.

Ariadna Gutierrez was instead declared runner-up and her crown was given to Pia Alonzo Ms Wurtzbach.

The reaction went from surprise to shock to anger and, in some cases, to mockery, with the story on the cover of every news media outlet in Colombia.

Even President Juan Manuel Santos had something to say. During the ceremony he tweeted: "Colombians are the most beautiful in the world! Congratulations @gutierrezary miss universe 2016!!!! I am proud!"

He later tweeted: "For us you'll always be our Miss Universe. We feel very proud."

And his political enemy, former President Alvaro Uribe, tweeted: "All our support to our Queen, her dignity is that of the Colombian woman, the mistreatment is to all the citizens."

Colombia was thrilled to nearly have back-to-back Miss Universe titles; Colombian Paulina Vega won in 2014.

- BBC