The 5th edition of Miss Universe Laos, i.e. Miss Universe Laos 2022, was held on Saturday, 8th October 2022 at the Grand Ballroom of Landmark Mekong Riverside Hotel in Vientiane where Payengxa Lor was crowned the new queen as she became the official representative of Laos at Miss Universe 2022. The theme of this year’s edition was ‘The Change Is Now’.
Payengxa Lor is 21 years of age and a business management student at the Lao-American College. She bested nineteen other finalists to win the national crown. She will be the first woman of Hmong descent to take part in the Miss Universe pageant.
The history of Hmong people in Laos is very interesting. Laos is now nearing the 50th anniversary of the end of the Secret War, a time when Laos was not only tossed into a civil war, but the Hmong were also being recruited by the CIA to fight against Lao and Vietnamese soldiers. In the aftermath of the American’s exodus from Laos in 1975, most of the Hmong allies were left behind to fend for themselves.
Hmong soldiers and civilians were hunted down and killed indiscriminately by the Lao government whether or not they took part in the war. Hmong people had become enemies of the State. Until the travel ban was recently lifted, it was still a dangerous place for Hmong people to travel to Laos. Therefore, Payengxa’s win at Miss Universe Laos 2022 is monumental for her community.
On winning the national crown, Lor took to her official social media as she wrote, “Pa Techa has done it. This is just one step, there is one more step left for the forest to continue. Thank you, brother Phounsavath Sihalath, sister Kylao, brother Tong, sister Tai, brother Jimmy. Thank you to all the makeup artists who made the 20 beautiful ladies look elegant and ready for everyone.”
Payengxa Lor lives in Vientiane, Laos. She started teaching English in 2018 via Learn English with Payengxa and in March 2022, she co-founded Hmong Woman Network. She also won three special awards namely Miss Perfect Skin by Renita Beauty Center, Miss Confident Smile by 4U Spa Dental and Scent of Beauty by Madame Fin at the national finale. Lor will definitely give a strong performance at Miss Universe 2022.
Miss Universe 2022, the 71st edition of Miss Universe, will be held on 14th January 2023 at the New Orleans Morial Convention Center in New Orleans, Louisiana where Harnaaz Sandhu of India will crown her successor at the end of the event finale.