The Miss Universe Organization (MUO) announced yesterday the telecast judges – three of them former Miss Universe titleholders – who will help crown the next Miss Universe at the SM Mall of Asia Arena on Monday, January 30, starting at 8 a.m.
This year’s members of the board of judges are:
• Miss Universe 1993 Dayanara Torres of Puerto Rico, a former UNICEF ambassador, author, model, and actress.
• Miss Universe 1994 Sushmita Sen of India, a Bollywood actress, philanthropist and champion of women’s rights in India; and founder of I AM Foundation. She is the first Miss Universe from India.
• Miss Universe 2011 Leila Lopes of Angola, who is also a former United Nations Goodwill Ambassador for Desertification currently working with various charitable organizations in Africa. She is the first Miss Universe from Angola.
• Mickey Boardman, editorial director of popular fashion and pop-culture magazine, PAPER.
• Cynthia Bailey, a television star, former model, and founder of The Bailey Agency School of Fashion, a modeling and fashion school dedicated to helping young women achieve their dreams.
• Francine LeFrak, an Emmy® and Tony award-winning producer, social entrepreneur, women’s empowerment activist and founder of Same Sky, a jewelry initiative that provides training and employment to HIV+ women survivors of the Rwandan Genocide.
As earlier announced, the Department of Tourism said that there will be no Filipino who will sit as member of the board of judges in this year’s competition.
Yesterday, the preliminary competitions of the Miss Universe 2016 pageant was held at the SM
Mall of Asia Arena.
The Top 12 candidates, who impressed the judges in swimsuit, evening gown and closed-door interviews during the preliminary round, will be announced during the finals.
Also, four-time Grammy Award-winning R&B group Boyz II Men will perform at the 65th Miss Universe beauty pageant, organizers said.
Known for their smooth harmonies, Boyz II Men holds the distinction of being the best-selling R&B group of all time, with an astounding 64 million albums sold. Some of their hits include “End of the Road,” “I’ll Make Love To You,” “On Bended Knee,” “4 Seasons of Loneliness,” etc.
American Rapper Flo Rida will also perform during the beauty contest. His hits include “Low,” “Right Round,” “Whistle,” “Good Feeling,” etc.