The Miss Universe organization held the national costume competition on 13th May 2021 at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel, Florida where divas from all over the world paraded on-stage with confidence and poise, representing their countries through their beautiful traditional costumes. The competition is a separate part of the pageant and doesn’t count towards contestants’ overall scores.
We have selected our favorite costumes who we believe not only stood out in the competition but also celebrated the country’s unique traditions and cultures embedded in their traditional outfits. Without further ado, let’s look at the national costumes at Miss Universe 2020 (in no order):
Philippines
Miss Universe Philippines 2020 Rabiya Mateo’s gorgeous national costume was inspired by the Philippine flag. The blue represents royalty, and the red represents courage and strength for an independent woman, and yellow, the color of the sun and stars, symbolizes freedom to choose whoever you want to be. The outfit was designed by the late Rocky Gathercole and the accessories were made by famous crown-maker, jeweler, and fashion designer Manny Halasan. Rabiya walked on stage donning the national costume with utmost pride and honor and with confidence to make the Philippines proud.
South Africa
Miss Universe South Africa 2020 Natasha Joubert’s national costume included sketches by local children, to portray how they currently see the state of the world in their own ‘words’. Their actual sketches were digitized and printed on a white flowy fabric that created an angelic silhouette for Natasha to symbolize overcoming hardship through guidance. The outfit that showcases hope for the future surely stood out by making a statement at the competition.
Mexico
Miss Universe Mexico 2020 Andrea Meza’s national costume ‘Alebrijje’ was enriched with Mexican culture and showcasing the colorful craft of the country and the stunning exquisite details made the entire outfit more attractive. Andrea looked cheerful and honored to be donning an outfit that showcased Mexican culture to the world.
Thailand
Miss Universe Thailand 2020 Amanda Obdam's Siamese Fighting Fish national costume, designed by the famous Akarat Phusanaphong, was one of the competition's highlights. The Siamese fighting fish is considered as the national aquatic animal of Thailand and Amanda wore her national costume with a lot of gratitude and comfort and, after the competition, took to her social media to share, "It's my honor to be on stage wearing the most meaningful outfit representing the beautiful message of the true fighter." Amanda’s confident and strong performance on-stage has surely made her spot among our favorites.
Singapore
Miss Universe Singapore 2020 Bernadette Belle Ong’s impactful and powerful national costume was inspired by Singapore’s national flag that symbolizes unity for all and social harmony in a multi-racial, multi-cultural and inter-religious country. The diva appeared on stage in a sparkly red bodysuit paired with a flowy cape that revealed the words' ‘Stop Asian Hate’ as she turned around. Bernadette appeared confident and assured about her national costume and felt honored that she had Miss Universe 2020’s platform to voice out her opinion.
Vietnam
Miss Universe Vietnam 2020 Nguyên Trân Khánh Vân's national costume, Ken Em, was designed to honor Vietnam's silk weaving tradition. The diva looked exquisite and elegant as she appeared on stage in her national costume. Later, the national costume behind the scenes revealed that the Ken Em costume weighs about 30kg with many crystal beads all over, which injured Nguyen's leg, but the diva carried the costume with utmost grace because it honored Vietnam's silk weaving tradition and she wanted to make her country proud.
Cayman Islands
Miss Universe Cayman Islands 2020 Maria Tibbetts' national costume, 'Sunset Dreams,' brought the colors of the sunset to the stage, which was mesmerizing to watch. The diva walked on stage with confidence and grace, which helped her to make her way into one of the favorite national costumes at Miss Universe 2020.
Canada
Miss Universe Canada 2020 Nova Stevens’ national costume was created with a SUPERHERO concept fighting for humanitarian and racial causes with a raised red fist representing the fight for equality, and a shield representing strength and resistance. The maple leaf and red and white are the dominant colors, symbolizing the national flag of Canada. The strong and powerful Nova explains, "This costume was inspired by the world around us; it’s injustice and the goodness within us. The goal was to obtain an impactful contemporary look, projecting strength and resistance and a reminder to always fight with LOVE. " Nova is truly an inspiration and one of the favorites for the crown.
(Photo Credits: Contestants Instagram)