The 70th edition of Miss Universe pageant, Miss Universe 2021, is all set to be held on 13th December 2021 in Eilat, Israel where Miss Universe 2020 Andrea Meza of Mexico will crown her successor at the end of the event finale.
The delegates are in the last leg of their preparations and have started to leave for the host country, one of the early contestants to depart for the middle eastern country is Juri Watanabe of Japan. The queen flew off to Israel from Haneda airport, Ota City, Tokyo on 24th November, 2021.
Juri took to her social media and left a heart-warming message before parting with her homeland. “It’s been two months since I became Miss Universe Japan. There were many challenges, but it has been an honor, to say the least, to be given this opportunity to grow and to represent. Now, it’s time to follow the steps of generations of strong women before me. To the people of Japan, I will continue do my best to represent you to the best of my abilities. To the women around the world, I promise to set new boundaries so that you and our future generations live in a world with more opportunities and less fear. Finally, I want to thank the Miss Universe Japan team for all the time and resources you’ve put in for me to get to where I am now. It’s been a pleasure to be able to learn from you all. I hope that I can make you all proud when I stand on stage. I may be on the other side of the world, but don’t forget about me,” she wrote under a picture of her raising the country’s flag.
The 26-year-old did her graduation in International Development Studies from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) and is also pursuing an MBA from Quantic. Juri was born in Japan and studied in China and the United States. Having been treated as an outsider most of her life, Watanabe struggled with her mental health early on. She now strives to destigmatise mental health issues by bringing awareness and making mental health care more accessible and affordable.
Through the Miss Universe platform, she hopes to bring awareness to the idea that we can come from different backgrounds but still share a common experience and to help others out there who face similar struggles.
Best of luck on her journey ahead!