As Miss World Africa 2023, Lesego Chombo, 24, of Botswana was one of the final four candidates of Miss World 2023. The other three were Europe’s Krystyna Pyszková, 25, of Czech Republic, Asia’s Yasmina Zaytoun, 21, of Lebanon and Caribbean’s Aché Abrahams, 24, of Trinidad and Tobago.
Hosted by Karan Johar, 51, of India and Miss World 2013 Megan Young, 34 of the Philippines, the Miss World 2023 coronation ceremony was held at the Jio World Convention Centre in Mumbai, India on May 9, 2023. A total of 112 candidates competed for the title.
In the final round, Chombo, Pyszková, Zaytoun and Abrahams pitched their Beauty with a Purpose projects to “Shark Tank India” Season 3 stars Anupam Mittal, 52, Namita Thapar, 46, and Ritesh Agarwal, 30.
When it was Chombo’s turn to speak, Young had to fix Botswana’s candidate first. Mittal, Thapar and Agarwal appeared only as guests but did not serve as judges.
There were 11 members in the panel of judges including Miss World chairwoman Julia Morley, 84, Miss World 2004 Maju Mantilla García, 39, of Peru and Miss World 2017 Manushi Chhillar, 26, of India. The ceremony was attended by Miss World 1975 Wilnelia Merced, 66, of Puerto Rico, Miss World 1986 Giselle Laronde, 60, of Trinidad and Tobago, Miss World 2015 Mireia Lalaguna, 31, of Spain, Miss World 2016 Stephanie Del Valle, 27, of Puerto Rico and Miss World 2018 Vanessa Ponce, 32, of Mexico.
In the end, it was Pyszková who won the Miss World 2023 crown. Zaytoun was first runner-up and was crowned Miss World Asia 2023.
Abrahams was Miss World Caribbean 2023. Miss World Europe 2023 Jessica Gagen, 27, of England and Miss World Americas 2023 Leticia Frota, 20, of Brazil finished in the Top 8 while Miss World Oceania 2023 Kristen Wright, 24, of Australia finished in the Top 12.
Some fans of Chombo were not satisfied with her Miss World Africa 2023 title and took to social media to express their disappointment. Some of them accused Young of ruining Chombo’s chances of winning the Miss World 2023 title by fixing the Motswana candidate’s hair.
“Last night during the final, I fixed Lesego Chombo’s (Miss Botswana) hair on stage. I wanted to offer a helping hand but I failed to oversee the bigger picture,” Young wrote on Facebook on March 10, 2024, “This coud have caused distress during that moment and I have been made aware that culturally, this is unacceptable. We have spoken privately last night at the hotel and I have apologized to Lesego in private.”
“To those who witnessed the incident, I also want to apologize for any discomfort or confusion my actions may have caused,” Young continued. “It was a thoughtless and disrespectful act, and I take full responsibility for it. I assure you that it was not my intention to invade personal space or make anyone feel uncomfortable. I deeply regret my actions and will strive to be more mindful and respectful in the future.”
While many Batswana people responded positively to Young’s apology, others were not satisfied. Around one hour after Young released her statement, Chombo herself took to Facebook to defend not only Miss World 2013 but also the newly crowned Miss World 2023.
“Batho bame, I appreciate that you are all looking out for me, but it really doesn’t make me feel good when you bring other people down in my name or for my sake,” Chombo wrote. “Please be kinder, please to Krystyna, to Megan, be kinder.”
CONAN Daily 