Miss Grand US Virgin Islands
| Formation | March 25, 2024 |
|---|---|
| Type | Beauty pageant |
| Headquarters | Miami |
| Location | |
Official language | English |
National director | Brian Javier |
Current Titleholder | Gisselle Burgos |
Parent organization |
|
| Affiliations | |
| Website | grandusvirginislands.store |
Miss Grand US Virgin Islands is the national beauty pageant responsible for selecting representatives of the United States Virgin Islands to compete in the international contest, Miss Grand International.[1] The title was first introduced in 2014, when Wilma Echandy, a 24-year-old Stateside Puerto Rican, was appointed to represent the territory at the Miss Grand International competition in Thailand.[1] Under the directorship of Brian Javier, the first Miss Grand US Virgin Islands contest happened in 2024.[2]
From 2014 to 2015, the franchise for designating representatives of the United States Virgin Islands to Miss Grand International was held by the pageant Miss US Paradise,[1] directed by Cyndee Frontal. During this period, the principal winners of Miss US Paradise were primarily assigned to the Miss World competition, while the franchise also enabled representation at Miss Grand International.[3] In 2017, the license was transferred to Chantel Martínez, founder of Miss Grand United States, and in 2018 it passed to Lulu Orange, organizer of Miss Universe US Virgin Islands.[4]
Since the first participation in 2014, the pageant has recorded a single placement at the international level: in 2024, Samantha Keaton achieved a Top 20 position at Miss Grand International.[1][5][6][7]
History
The United States Virgin Islands made its debut at Miss Grand International in 2014 when the director of Miss US Paradise, Cyndee Frontal, acquired the license and subsequently appointed a Puerto Rican American model, Wilma Echandy, to compete internationally in Thailand,[1] but Echandy went unplaced.[1][8] In the following year, former Miss World United States Virgin Islands 2013, Petra Cabrera, was assigned by the same licensee to compete and also was unplaced.[9][5] The partnership between Miss US Paradise and Miss Grand International was later terminated in 2016.
After an absence in 2016, the license was purchased by the Miss Grand United States director, Chantel Martínez, who assigned the first runner-up of Miss Grand United States 2017, Brianna Key, to join the 2017 international stage in Vietnam.[10] The license was then transferred to the Miss Universe US Virgin Islands in the following years and the vice-miss of such a contest was sent internationally.[4]
Edition
The first edition of the Miss Grand United States Virgin Islands pageant was held on March 25, 2024.[2]
| Edition | Date | Venue | Entrant | Winner | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | March 25, 2024 | CUZ Miami Venue, Doral, Florida, United States | 8 | Samantha Keaton[a] | [2][13] |
| 2nd | March 2026 |
- Note
International competition
The following is a list of the United States Virgin Islands' representatives at the Miss Grand International contest.
| Year | Representative | Original national title | Competition performance | National director | Ref. | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Placement | Other awards | |||||
| 2014 | Wilma Echandy | Queen of Puerto Rico 2012 | Unplaced | N/a | Cyndee Frontal | [1][3] |
| 2015 | Petra Cabrera | Miss U.S. Paradise World 2013 | Unplaced | N/a | ||
| 2016 | No representative | |||||
| 2017 | Brianna Key | 1st runner-up Miss Grand United States 2017 | Unplaced | N/a | Chantel Martínez | [6][10] |
| 2018 | Morgan Evans | 1st runner-up Miss Universe U.S. Virgin Islands 2018 | Unplaced | N/a | Lulu Orange | [4][7][15] |
| 2019–2022 | No representatives | |||||
| 2023 | Heather Thompson | Finalist Miss Grand United States 2019[16] | Unplaced | N/a | Brian Javier | [17][18] |
| 2024 | Samantha Keaton | Miss Grand United States Virgin Islands 2024 | Top 20 | N/a | [13][19] | |
| 2025 | Giselle Burgos | 4th runner-up Miss Grand United States 2024 | Unplaced | N/a | [20] | |
Winners' gallery
-
Wilma Echandy
Miss Grand US Virgin Islands 2014 -
Petra Cabrera
Miss Grand US Virgin Islands 2015 -
Heather Thompson
Miss Grand US Virgin Islands 2023 -
Samantha Keaton
Miss Grand US Virgin Islands 2024 (Dethroned) -
Shriya Boppana
1st runner-up Miss Grand US Virgin Islands 2024 -
Giselle Burgos
Miss Grand US Virgin Islands 2025
National finalists
The following list is the national finalists of the Miss Grand US Virgin Islands pageant, as well as the competition results. Eight contestants competed in the pageant's first edition held in Doral, Florida, the United States.[21]
| ||||||||||||
Year Represented
|
2024[13][21] |
|---|---|
| Barrett | Emma Knapp (Withdrew)
|
| Christiansted | Shriya Boppana (1st RU)
|
| Cinnamon Bay | Sonika Komal (Top 5)
|
| Coral Bay | Samantha Keaton (Winner) (Dethroned)
|
| Frederiksted | Brianna Lopez |
| Kingshill | Rebecca Arianna |
| Red Hook | Kathyria Burgos |
| Reef Bay | London Tucker (2nd RU)
|
| Saint Thomas | Alayzia Christopher (Top 5)
|
| Water Island | Layel Hamchou (Withdrew)
|
| Total | 8 |
See also
References
- ^ a b c d e f g "Otra boricua en Miss Grand International que niega la patria" (in Spanish). El Nuevo Día. 8 October 2014. Retrieved 20 July 2023.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link) - ^ a b c "Miss Grand USVI 2024". grandusvirginislands.store. 2024. Archived from the original on 15 January 2024. Retrieved 15 January 2024.
- ^ a b "Miss U.S. Paradise Whitney Carter leaves for Miss World 2010 in Sanya". www.whatsonsanya.com. 2 October 2010. Retrieved 20 July 2023.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link) - ^ a b c "Major Announcement: The MUUSVI Team is happy to announce that we are bringing the opportunity to compete in the Miss Grand International pageant back to the U.S. Virgin Islands! Effective immediately, the first runner-up of the Miss Universe U.S. Virgin Islands pageant will be awarded the Miss Grand U.S. Virgin Islands title". Miss Universe U.S. Virgin Islands. 1 September 2018. Retrieved 21 July 2023.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link) - ^ a b c "Lệ Quyên bất ngờ "trắng tay" tại Miss Grand International 2015". Dantri.com.vn (in Vietnamese). 26 October 2015. Retrieved 9 February 2023.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link) - ^ a b "Ngắm Top 20 Miss Grand International 2017 nóng bỏng với phần thi bikini" (in Vietnamese). Voice of Vietnam. 26 October 2017. Retrieved 12 May 2023.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link) - ^ a b "Meenakshi Chaudhary from India wins 1st runner-up title at Miss Grand International 2018". Times of India. 25 October 2018. Retrieved 27 August 2022.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link) - ^ Arvin Ello (6 October 2014). "Miss Cuba is Miss Grand International 2014". www.vintersections.com. Retrieved 9 February 2023.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link) - ^ a b "Nhiều thí sinh 'Hoa hậu Hòa bình Quốc tế' bị chê xấu". Baodautu.vn (in Vietnamese). 17 October 2015. Archived from the original on 18 October 2015. Retrieved 20 July 2023.
- ^ a b "Miss US Virgin Islands, Miss Puerto Rico arrive in Vietnam". Voice of Vietnam. 5 October 2017. Retrieved 21 July 2023.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link) - ^ "ดราม่านางงามโผล่อีก! ปลดฟ้าผ่า Miss Grand US Virgin Islands หลังเพิ่งประกวด MGI ที่ไทยเสร็จหมาดๆ" [Another beauty pageant drama! Miss Grand US Virgin Islands was fired after finishing the MGI competition in Thailand.]. Matichon (in Thai). 26 October 2024. Retrieved 30 November 2024.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link) - ^ Minh Nghĩa (26 October 2024). "Một hoa hậu bị phế truất ngay sau chung kết Miss Grand International 2024" [A beauty queen was dethroned right after the final of Miss Grand International 2024]. VietNamNet (in Vietnamese). Retrieved 30 November 2024.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link) - ^ a b c "Á hậu Mỹ đăng quang Hoa hậu Hòa bình đảo US Virgin". Tiền Phong. 28 March 2024. Retrieved 29 March 2024.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link) - ^ "Kyrelle Thomas To Represent Territory At Miss World". 5 November 2016. Retrieved 20 July 2023.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link) - ^ "Trang phục dân tộc độc đáo tại Miss Grand International" (in Vietnamese). VNExpress. 13 October 2018. Retrieved 20 July 2023.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link) - ^ "Miss Grand New York". www.autumnmoonportraits.com. 5 July 2019. Retrieved 19 August 2023.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link) - ^ Berkat Prima (23 August 2023). "7 Potret Miss Grand Kepulauan Virgin AS 2023 Heather Marie, Comeback!" (in Indonesian). IDM Times. Retrieved 27 August 2023.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link) - ^ Chavely Chiroque; Carol Ruiz; Richard Gomero (25 October 2023). "Luciana Fuster ganó el Miss Grand International 2023: sencillez y glamour en su paso por el concurso de belleza". www.infobae.com (in Spanish). Retrieved 25 October 2023.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link) - ^ Josiah Antonio (25 October 2024). "India wins Miss Grand International 2024; PH bet CJ Opiaza is 1st runner-up". ABS-CBN News. Retrieved 25 October 2024.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link) - ^ "Miss Grand International: Contestants". Miss Grand International. 7 October 2025. Archived from the original on 6 October 2025. Retrieved 7 October 2025.
- ^ a b "Miss Grand US Virgin Islands 2024 contestants". grandusvirginislands.store. January 2024. Archived from the original on 15 January 2024. Retrieved 15 January 2024.
External links
Media related to Miss Grand United States Virgin Islands at Wikimedia Commons