For The First Time In 70 Years, Miss Universe To Allow Mothers And Married Women To Enter Pageant

The eligibility criteria for the Miss Universe competition are being updated after 70 years.Married women and mothers will be allowed to compete, starting with the 72nd pageant, which will be held in 2023.

It's unquestionably a historic choice for the Miss Universe beauty pageant to broaden the competition's eligibility by allowing mothers and married women to participate.?

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According to Fox News, starting in 2023, the marital and parental status will no longer be prerequisites for qualifying pageant entrants.

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It has always been a rule of the Miss Universe competition that contestants must be unmarried and keep it that way for the duration of their reign.

Mothers have traditionally been disqualified, and contestants are usually obliged to abstain from becoming pregnant while claiming the title of Miss Universe.

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Miss Universe 2020 winner Andrea Meza of Mexico praised the rule change. She labeled the established rules as sexist and "unrealistic."

?"I honestly love that this is happening," Meza said in an interview with Insider.?

"Just like society changes and women are now occupying leadership positions where in the past only men could, it was about time pageants changed and opened up to women with families."

The existing rules, according to Meza, are "sexist" and "unrealistic" in their attempt to select a winner who will appeal to the broadest audience.

"A few people are against these changes because they always wanted to see a single beautiful woman available for a relationship,"?

Meza added,

"They always wanted to see a woman that, from the outside, looks so perfect that she's almost unreachable. The former is sexist, and the latter is unrealistic. "

The Miss Universe pageant is broadcast in over 160 territories and countries worldwide, including the United States on FYI and Telemundo.

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Harnaaz Sandhu of India was crowned Miss Universe 2021. Harnaaz Sandhu, from Punjab, represented India at the 70th Miss Universe 2021 pageant, which was held in Eilat, Israel.?

Before Harnaaz Sandhu, only two Indians had won the Miss Universe title—actresses Sushmita Sen in 1994 and Lara Dutta in 2000.

(With ANI inputs)

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