A brand-new Miss USA has been crowned at one of the biggest beauty pageants of the year.
Miss Virginia was crowned the winner on Thursday, August 27, at the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts of Miami-Dade County in Miami. Competing against 50 other women, Justus Kelley wowed the judges with her brains, beauty and talents.
Kelley’s win marked a history-making moment at the event as she became the first mom – as well as the first married woman – to be crowned Miss USA.
In 2023, the event changed the rules that previously prevented women with children from winning the pageant. The rule change also removed the age cap that was previously in place.
Following tradition, the competition began earlier in the week with a preliminary costume show. Contestants dressed up in attire representative of the state they were representing.
During the preliminaries, contestants modelled both swimwear and evening gowns, while also undergoing closed-door interviews to assess their communication skills, intelligence and personality.
The ladies lucky to make it to the final portion of the competition Thursday faced a variety of judges, including The Shade Room founder Angelica Nwandu, Miss USA 2016 DeShauna Barber-Echols, Michelle McLean, Madison Anderson, So You Think You Can Dance choreographer Mia Michaels and celebrity talent manager Steven Grossman.
The seventh and final judge was the viewer at home who had the opportunity to score the contestants live during the Top 20. (Miss USA was streamed live on Queen Beauty Network.)
Ultimately, hosts Ian Ziering and Kenya Moore had the honor of announcing the winner in front of a variety of special guests, including The Valley star and Miss USA 2014 Nia Sanchez Booko.
“Today we will welcome a new Miss USA into the sisterhood 😍,” she wrote via Instagram on Thursday. “I’m honored to be here celebrating the 75th anniversary of Miss USA. Let’s do this!”
Hours before a new Miss USA was crowned, organizers gave thanks to Audrey Eckert for all the work she did in the last year.
“Audrey, from the moment you became Miss USA, you stepped into this role with such grace, strength and authenticity. You brought a warmth and heart to this year that made your reign completely your own 🤍,” organizers wrote via Instagram. “You used your voice to inspire others, led with intention and represented Miss USA in a way that made us incredibly proud to stand beside you.”
The statement continued, “Your reign may be ending, but the impact you’ve made will always remain a part of Miss USA. Your story is only getting started. Once Miss USA, always Miss USA 👑✨.”
The winner of Miss USA has officially advanced to the Miss Universe competition, which will be held in Puerto Rico later this year.
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