Beauty queen Magalí Benejam was stripped of her Miss Universe Argentina crown after she made a series of controversial comments.
Benejam, 30, claimed during a livestream that the competition was rigged after it was won by Danish beauty Victoria Kjaer Theilvig, 21, in Mexico City in November.
“When they announced the Top 5, I saw the judges looking at each other in (strange) ways,” Benejam said.
“They started looking at each other like, ‘This is not what we chose, this is not what I chose.’ That’s what I felt from the outside, and that’s where I said, ‘Okay, this is fixed.'” They always fixed it. , every year.
Benejam placed 12th in the competition and was highly critical of the way the Miss Universe Organization became inclusive by removing its age restriction for the 73rd pageant.
The beauty pageant also allowed married women, mothers and transgender people to participate.
The woman from Córdoba also criticized the attitude of Miss Dominican Republic Celinee Santos.
He added that Miss Puerto Rico Jennifer Colón stopped being friendly as coronation night approached.
Miss Argentina Magalí Benejam was stripped of her Miss Universe Argentina title on January 2 following her controversial comments during an interview on the Rey Lucho YouTube livestream that criticized the beauty pageant and its contestants.
Miss Argentina said that the Miss Universe beauty pageant ‘was always fixed’
“I talked to her a couple of times, but the last few days she decided to stop talking to me, I don’t know why,” Benejam recalled.
‘I think she was very nervous and very in her element and it happened to me that in the last two days I said to her: “Hi Jenny, how are you?” and she looked at me and did not answer.’
Benejam also attacked Colón’s outfit for the final.
“I think it was a complete decision by her organization, I don’t think she had a say here because what I saw of her style during the competition was very nice,” he said.
The Miss Universe Organization announced its decision to strip Benejam of her title as Miss Universe Argentina in a press release, which it issued on January 2.
“Our values focus on celebrating diversity, promoting inclusion and respecting all individuals, regardless of their origins, beliefs or experiences,” said the organizer of the international beauty pageant.
‘The words and actions of our representatives must reflect these unwavering principles to which all contestants commit when joining the Miss Universe community.
‘The decision comes after careful consideration and aligns with our commitment to maintaining the highest standards of personal and professional conduct. We want to emphasize that this action is taken to protect the integrity of the organization and the opportunities it provides to women around the world.’
Victoria Kjaer Theilvig, 21, was named Miss Universe number 73 on Saturday night in Mexico City. The Danish student beat more than 120 contestants to achieve this.
Benejam also criticized the attitude of Miss Dominican Republic
The Portuguese Marina Machete, a transgender woman, was among the top 20 in the contest last year
DailyMail.com has contacted Benejam, Santos and Colón for comment.
Theilvig beat out more than 120 contestants after the 2023 competition featured married, plus-size and transgender contestants.
Her victory went viral as people online commented how things were “getting back to normal” because a woman had taken the crown.
There was backlash to the previous year’s competition over the inclusion of a transgender beauty queen, Portugal’s Marina Machete, who placed in the top 20.