Smart choice! Miss Mexico WINS Miss Universe after walking out with her fellow contestants when organiser publicly berated her and called her ‘dumb’

Miss Mexico has been crowned Miss Universe, bringing to a close what has been one of the most scandal-plagued seasons in pageant history.

Fatima Bosch, 25, had already made headlines earlier in November when she stormed out of a key event after pageant organiser Nawat Itsaragrasil publicly berated her and called her ‘dumb’ in front of stunned competitors. 

Mr Itsaragrasil had even threatened to disqualify anyone who dared to defend her, but dozens of Ms Bosch’s pageant pals staged a walkout that sent shockwaves through the beauty world and turned the winner into a symbol of defiance.

Barely a week later, the chaos escalated with the resignation of two judges – including one who openly accused organisers of rigging the entire competition.

While social media across Mexico erupted in celebrations, with many praising her stunning comeback and bravery, others were quick to suspect ulterior motives.

Whispers that the crown may have been awarded to make up for the earlier humiliation have been circulating online.

The trouble began at a promotional event where Thai media tycoon and pageant organiser Mr Itsaragrasil angrily confronted Ms Bosch over her apparent failure to post promotional content on her social media.

When she pushed back, he dramatically called in security and threatened to punish anyone siding with her – prompting Ms Bosch to walk out as several contestants bravely followed.

Other beauty queens appeared to rise in solidarity with Bosch, before freezing as Mr Itsaragrasil warned those still wanting to participate should ‘sit down’.

‘What your director did is not respectful: he called me dumb,’ Bosch told reporters at the time. ‘The world needs to see this because we are empowered women and this is a platform for our voice.’

Danish beauty queen Victoria Theilvig, who won the top title last year, was also among the group of models who stormed out of the sashing ceremony.

Justifying her protest against pageant authority, 21-year-old Theilvig said: ‘This is about women’s rights.’

‘To trash another girl – it’s beyond disrespectful and it’s nothing I’ve ever done. That’s why I’m taking my coat and I’m going.’

The Miss Universe Organisation slammed Mr Itsaragrasil’s conduct as ‘malicious’, while Mr Rocha, speaking by video from Mexico, told his Thai business partner to just ‘stop’.

Even Mexico’s president Claudia Sheinbaum weighed in – hailing Bosch as an ‘example of how women should speak out’ against mistreatment.

Tellingly, Mr Itsaragrasil kept a low profile during Friday’s coronation – posting audience snapshots but noticeably absent from the stage. 

After Bosch was crowned, he shared a pointed message online: ‘A billion words that cannot be said’, later adding to reporters: ‘As for the outcome, we leave it to the viewers at home to judge… people everywhere can make their own assessment.’ 

Fans online wasted no time linking the win to the week’s drama, with one writing on social media: ‘Next year, whoever walks out will win,’ and another declaring: ‘They had to crown her to make up for injustice earlier to save Miss Universe!’

But the storm refuses to settle, Judge Omar Harfouch announced his resignation days earlier, alleging a secretive ‘impromptu jury’ had locked in finalists long before the show.

Hours later, fellow judge and former football great Claude Makelele also quit – citing ‘unforeseen personal reasons’. 

‘An impromptu jury has been formed to select 30 finalists from among the 136 participating countries, without the presence of any of the real [eight] members of the jury, including me,’ Harfouch wrote on Tuesday, adding that he had discovered this via social media.

The unofficial jury comprises ‘individuals with a significant potential conflict of interest due to some personal relationships with some of the Miss Universe contestants’, he claimed.

The musician did not elaborate on how this ‘impromptu jury’ would function, or how it would override the official jury’s decision.

Organisers strongly denied Harfouch’s accusations, insisting ‘no external group has been authorised to evaluate delegates or select finalists’. 

An official statement read: ‘Given Mr. Harfuch’s [sic] expressed confusion, his public mischaracterization of the program, and his stated desire not to participate, the Miss Universe Organisation respectfully acknowledges his withdrawal from the official judging panel.’

The pageant added that Harfouch was banned from ‘using, displaying, referencing or associating himself’ with the Miss Universe brand ‘effective immediately.’

Yet mere minutes after the official crowning, Harfouch doubled down – reposting fresh allegations of rigging. 

And as if the drama wasn’t enough, Miss Jamaica suffered a terrifying fall during the evening gown preliminaries and had to be stretchered away. 

Footage showed a glamorous Dr Gabrielle Henry strutting down the runway in Bangkok on Wednesday evening in her sparkly orange dress when she suddenly steps off the edge of the stage and plunges to the ground.

Audience members can be heard screaming as they react to the dramatic fall, and some are even seen jumping up from their seats to help the Jamaican beauty queen.

Video clips went viral immediately – though organisers later confirmed she was under hospital care with no broken bones and ‘under good care’.

Just days before the tumble, a video sparked controversy at this year’s event after viewers claimed it showed Miss Israel giving Miss Palestine hostile looks.

The clip went viral online after it seemed to show Melanie Shiraz, 27, glaring and rolling her eyes at Nadeen Ayoub, also 27, who appeared to be standing next to her.

But Shiraz has since posted separate, ‘original footage’ from the event, showing her standing behind Ayoub and diverting her expression elsewhere.

The Israeli beauty queen has claimed the video where she appeared to give Miss Palestine the side-eye was ‘edited’ and from a ‘third-party’, and was designed to mislead audiences intentionally.

Miss Thailand, Praveenar Singh, was named first runner-up, while Miss Venezuela, Stephany Abasali finished third. Miss Philippines Ma Ahtisa Manalo and Miss Cote d’Ivoire Olivia Yac rounded out the Top Five. 

All this comes as the decades-old pageant faces serious questions about its relevance, amid falling viewership and growing pressure to modernise.