Miss Bolivia Talked About The “Evil” Things She Saw Backstage At The Miss Universe Pageant

Lenka was incredibly proud to represent her home country at the 69th international beauty pageant. Born in La Paz, Bolivia, the young model claimed the winning crown in the national competition; putting her among those vying for the coveted title of Miss Universe 2020. But Lenka wasn’t prepared for the “evil” that she would experience during the cutthroat fight for the ultimate crown.

Thanks to movies like Drop Dead Gorgeous in 1999 and TLC’s Toddlers & Tiaras on TV, we’ve seen the ugly side of beauty pageantry. But it’s hard to know how much of it is accurate or simply fabricated for our entertainment. Well, if anyone is qualified to deliver a damning expose on the backstage world of beauty contests, it’s undeniably savvy, former winner Lenka.

Yes, you see Lenka is not just a pretty face. For a start, she speaks three languages — Spanish, French and English — and is an academic high-flyer. Maths was one of her strongest subjects at school, and the Bolivian beauty is musically talented too — she likes to sing and play the violin. Looks, brains, talent… Wow, some people really do have it all!

Oh, and did we mention that Lenka is a caring, compassionate person too? She’s a human rights activist, you see. It was this that earned her the honor of being the first recipient of the Miss Universe “Social Impact Award.” Speaking to Colombian commentator Diego Acero, Lenka said she was “shocked” to win the accolade.

The beauty queen also told Acero that she burst “into tears” after it was announced that she’d scooped the prize. With it, she received $10,000 towards her work to reduce social and economic inequality in Bolivia. The award was for her “leadership and dedication” said the judges, in bettering “the lives of the people in her country.”

In her “Miss Universe Up Close” video, Lenka explained, “I always wonder why so many people are suffering.” She continued, “Activism for human rights, gender [equality], and sustainable alternatives for our world is the result of actually working for it to be different not only for me but for the ones I love and the ones that are to come.”

It was her own experience of poverty as a child that motivated Lenka to start the “Huertos Urbanos Bolivia” initiative for tackling hunger. And the beauty also leads workshops designed to educate young students on issues like gender inequality and violence. But she thought she’d be returning to her home country empty-handed after Miss Universe 2020.

So, naturally, it was a shock when “Mark the choreographer grabbed her during the commercials and told her [Lenka] to prepare to return to the stage,” wrote Critical Beauty on Instagram. An emotional Lenka said in her acceptance speech, “For me, there is nothing more important than working for my community and we hope to continue working not only in Bolivia but throughout Latin America.” 

The beauty queen also posted a photo of the triumphant moment on Instagram. She added, “And how many emotions are seen in this image! They say that the moments that we will remember the most in our lives are those that will mark our history. Thank you all for being part of mine.”

And yet Miss Universe 2020 was an experience of highs and lows for Lenka. Because she’s also spoken about the darker side of the competition behind the scenes. Almost as though it were cursed, the show was subject to a string of other setbacks, too. The biggest, of course, being the pandemic, which saw the pageant postponed from late 2020 until May the following year.

And that’s only the half of it. The COVID-19 outbreak also meant that lots of other national beauty pageants — qualifiers for the global competition — were postponed or cancelled. It threw the contest into chaos, with former runners-up having to step in, or auditions having to take place in a quest for new delegates. Three new contestants also had to be found after the originals dropped out.

A replacement had to be found for Miss Belgium after Céline Van Ouytsel withdrew because she didn’t want to compete during the pandemic. She was replaced by an earlier national competition runner-up, Dhenia Covens. Due to a date clash, there was a swap of Miss France contest winners, too. Meanwhile, health issues forced Miss Polski 2019, Magdalena Kasiborska, to drop out and be replaced. Are you keeping up?

The problems didn’t end there, either. Lockdown restrictions forced Miss Bangladesh contestant, Tangia Zaman Methila, to pull out of the running only weeks before the competition. The nation was in fact one of 20 others that withdrew from the contest altogether in the end. Miss Universe 2020 was also the first in which Germany had failed to participate since 1952. Jeepers!

With an unprecedented number of withdrawals, Miss Universe 2020 become one of the smallest global pageants in history. And there were other issues besides contestants dropping out left, right and center. The fact that the competition was fraught with uncertainty clearly made the TV networks nervous, as Fox dropped the show from its schedule. Instead, it was picked up by cable channel FYI.

Then shortly before the competition, it was announced that rapper Pitbull would be the guest performer. But in yet another blow, the star pulled out at the last minute, leaving “Despacito” singer Luis Fonsi to step in. All in all, it seemed as though nothing would go right with Miss Universe 2020. The organisers must have been tearing their hair out (so long as the competitors weren’t).

And while logistical issues dogged the show, there were tensions behind the scenes, too. But it seems this is nothing new. Beauty pageants attract beautiful, wholesome young women with squeaky-clean reputations, in theory anyway. Yet controversy and scandal seem to follow the competitions everywhere. You wouldn’t believe how naughty some of these beauty queens have been…

Take the 2016 Miss Teen USA, for example. Karlie Hay nearly lost her crown after it was revealed that she had made alleged racist comments on Twitter. People magazine reported that three years before the contest, Hay had repeatedly included a racially-offensive word in tweets. She was allowed to keep her trophy though, and posted an apology on Instagram.

The Miss USA 2018 winner also had to scramble to retract her words after they got her into hot water. Sarah Rose Summers was accused of being derogatory about the English-speaking skills of other contestants, in an Instagram video. Summers later wrote on the social media site, “I said something that I now realize can be perceived as not respectful, and I apologize.”

And there was one pageant contestant who just kept getting into trouble. Katie Rees was crowned Miss Nevada in 2005, but promptly lost her title after indecent photos of her emerged. Rees attempted to clear her name, but she was then later arrested on two separate charges of assault and drug possession. Oh dear.

You think that’s bad… A former Miss Pennsylvania was convicted and sent to prison for numerous charges of theft. Brandi Weaver-Gates went as far as to shave her head to pass for a leukemia sufferer. She then duped a number of kind-hearted donors — some of whom were actual cancer patients — into giving her huge amounts of cash. Shocking eh?

It’s not just the beauty queens though, but the competitions themselves that have generated plenty of controversy. One of the most memorable being the time that Miss Universe 2015 host Steve Harvey announced Miss Colombia, Ariadna Gutierrez, as the show’s winner. In fact, the crown should have gone to Miss Philippines, Pia Alonzo Wurtzbach. Awkward!

And in a similar flub, Elizabeth Fechtel was announced as the winner of the Miss Florida 2014 competition. But it later turned out that a scoring slip-up meant that runner-up Victoria Cowen should have been the winner. Imagine the embarrassment and disappointment for poor Fechtel, when her moment of glory was taken away.

Then there was the case of the former Miss America boss Sam Haskell. The CEO was forced to resign in disgrace in 2017 after HuffPost published a series of his emails. In them, he made offensive comments about Miss America contestants. “Snakes” being one of the milder words he used. 

Celebrity Vanessa Williams got in a bit of bother following her proud moment as the first African-American to win Miss America. The respected actress and singer claimed the title in 1984, but was forced to give it up after organizers learned that she had posed in the altogether for Penthouse magazine. She eventually received an apology...32 years later.

Williams isn’t the only celebrity beauty queen who’s been publicly shamed, though. News anchor Lu Parker, who took the title of Miss USA in 1994, was arrested in 2016 for allegedly stealing another passenger’s ear phones at LAX airport. Parker was removed from her flight after the owner of the $200 earbuds accused her. But the celebrity insisted that she took them with the intention of returning them.

Speaking of de-crownings, one poor contestant had her tiara literally snatched from her head in 2021. Mrs Sri Lanka, Pushpika De Silva, had just been declared the winner when Caroline Jurie forcibly took the crown off her. Jurie claimed that De Silva was divorced — against the pageant’s rules — but De Silva denied this and later launched legal proceedings against her foe.

That wasn’t even the first time a “crown-snatch” had happened, either. Sheislane Hayalla also whipped the tiara off the head of Miss Amazon, Carol Toledo, back in 2015. And before anyone could stop her, the sore loser fled the stage with it. Hayalla later told news agency Globo, “She didn’t deserve the title.” Yikes!

Even as far back as the 1960s, beauty competitions were being accused of objectifying women. And in 1968 hundreds of female protestors turned up at the Miss America pageant brandishing signs like, “Welcome to the Miss America cattle auction.” The women also crowned a sheep — yes, a real sheep, to make their point.

Things got political during one state competition, Miss Massachusetts 2018, when one winner gave up her crown in protest. Maude Gorman returned her sash following a competition skit that poked fun at the #MeToo movement. Suffice to say, there was an apology to Gorman from the organizers. 

Another pageant, another de-crowning… On this occasion, it was the 2017 winner of Miss Florida USA who had her title revoked. Genesis Davila lost her crown amid accusations that she got her hair and make-up professionally done. Davila disputed the claims, but the crown still went to runner-up Linette De Los Santos.

And in perhaps the saddest case of a winner losing her crown...Mary Leona Gage won the Miss USA competition in 1957. But it turned out that she had broken pageant rules by being under 21, and married with children. The shame of her de-crowning, Gage later told The Baltimore Sun, caused her to become suicidal and addicted to drugs. She passed away in 2010.

Gage’s story certainly illustrates the darker side of beauty pageantry. But even more goes on behind the scenes than we really know about. Until Lenka Nemer D’rpic gave a revealing insight into it, that is. If you’ve ever seen black-comedy flick, Drop Dead Gorgeous, you’ll know that it parodies the world of beauty pageantry to great effect — including costume sabotage and full-on cat fights between contestants.

For a start, the Bolivian beauty queen predicted that she wouldn’t win Miss Universe 2020. It seems that Lenka had a hunch that the judges were looking for something — or someone — different to her, for the title. As she told Diego Acero in her Instagram interview, “it was not [her] destiny” to win the crown. 

In the interview translated by Critical Beauty, Lenka was asked why she didn’t make the semi-finals and responded, “Whatever was supposed to happen that night had already been written by destiny.” In fact, the South American stunner had predicted that Australian contestant, Maria Thattil, would win the competition. But it was Andrea Meza from Mexico who claimed the title. So much for predictions.

So did Lenka have any words of wisdom for overall winner Meza? “She advised Andrea to make the most of her reign because it is short,” Critical Beauty wrote. Which only goes to show how fickle beauty pageant reigns are. And begs the question, are they worth the heartache that many contestants go through in the battle for the crown?

While Lenka emerged semi-triumphant from that battle — having scooped the Social Impact Award — she certainly bore a few scars. For a start, she was slammed for the red gown with pointed shoulders that she wore during the contest. But the Bolivian activist ignored the criticism and boldly wore the dress “because it symbolizes strength and empowerment.”

Lenka also revealed that her gown was damaged when she accidentally stepped on it. But hers wasn’t the only dress ruined during the course of the competition. Hinting at sabotage of show costumes by fellow contestants, Lenka added that she “saw feathers missing from the national costumes and other ‘evil’ things. But she didn’t see which of the contestants had committed them,” according to Critical Beauty.

So it seems that while there might be a certain amount of camaraderie between contestants, there’s also bias, backstabbing and sabotage. “Evil things happen all the time even in pageants,” said Lenka in her interview with Acero. And Miss Bolivia 2020 revealed to blogger Kike Sanchez that she had seen lots of “evil behavior.”

Lenka continued, “I saw nasty behaviors against lots of the candidates. What a shame!” It certainly is. So there you have it folks… From beauty queens with shady pasts and criminal records, to onstage crown-stealing and costume sabotage — clearly the world of beauty pageantry has a long way to go still. And who better to contest to that fact than former Miss America, Deidre Downs, who made history when she did something that no other winner had ever done before.

Downs could never be described as your average Miss America. For starters, the Alabama native only began entering beauty pageants in order to pay for her medical school studies. And while Downs managed to hold onto the crown for a record-breaking three calendar years, in 2018 she made an announcement that left many who’d followed her career in shock.

Downs had first caught national attention in 2004, when she had qualified to represent her home state of Alabama in the annual Miss America competition. And the hopeful made a big impression almost from the start by winning the Quality of Life Award in the initial stage of the contest.

Downs was still in the running, then, during the next stages of the competition, which were beamed simultaneously to ABC viewers from Atlantic City’s Boardwalk Hall. The finalists competed in several rounds, with each participant having to show off their best looks in the swimsuit, casual wear and evening gown segments. They also had to take part in a quiz, with all of these categories helping to whittle down the competitors to just two.

Then, following the one-on-one talent contest portion of the night, Deidre Downs was crowned the winner ahead of Miss Louisiana Ericka Dunlap, making her only the third Miss America to hail from the state of Alabama. And not only was the 24-year-old appointed Miss America, but she was also gifted a scholarship worth $50,000.

So, how exactly did Downs end up receiving such an honor? Well, her road to Miss America stardom began when she graduated from Alabama’s Pelham High School in the late 1990s. With a volleyball scholarship in tow, she then went on to continue her studies at the University of Virginia. After Downs’ freshman year, however, she decided to change her career course.

Yet Downs’ choice to move from the University of Virginia to study medicine at Samford University had one major drawback: she had to surrender her scholarship. To raise the money that she needed for her education, then, she decided to become a regular beauty pageant contestant.

And Downs wasn’t a complete stranger to the concept, either. She’d competed in such competitions while at high school, for instance, and had even been crowned a pageant winner during her senior year. It was only at the turn of the century, however, that the young woman began showcasing both her beauty and her brains at a regional level.

Downs made her debut in the 2000 Miss Alabama pageant competition, slowly climbing her way up the ranks in the years that followed. You see, while she didn’t place in her first contest, she managed to finish fourth in 2001 and 2002. In 2003 she even very nearly went all the way by coming second overall. At this point, the pageant competitor had actually finished her studies at Samford University.

Yes, Downs had graduated with a history degree – as well as a double minor in chemistry and biology – in 2002. But her educational ambitions hadn’t ended there. For one, she wanted to attend the University of Alabama School of Medicine, and so she continued to chase the Miss Alabama prize to help with the necessary funds.

Then, following several near-misses, in 2004 Downs finally got the title that she had craved. After being crowned Miss Leeds Area, that year she once again entered the Miss Alabama beauty pageant. And it proved to be fifth time lucky for Downs when reigning Miss Alabama champion Catherine Crosby presented her with the prestigious crown.

Thanks to that victory, then, Downs was able to grace the Miss America contest for the first time. Citing “Curing Childhood Cancer” as her platform, she impressed judges enough in the preliminary round to scoop the Quality of Life Award. And the pageant hopeful continued to wow in the televised live part of the main contest.

In fact, Downs ultimately became one of the last ten contestants, advancing to the final five after showing off her best swimsuit and casual wear looks. Then, following the evening gown category and quiz, two contestants remained: Downs and Dupont. And in order to determine the overall winner, the pair went head-to-head in a talent contest.

Much to her delight, Downs emerged victorious and was presented with the crown by previous winner Ericka Dunlap. The $50,000 scholarship prize was likely far more valuable to the aspiring medical professional, however, and that particular windfall took her total pageant money earned to a pretty impressive $110,000.

And as it happens, Downs inadvertently ended up holding the title of Miss America across three calendar years – making her the only winner to date to achieve this feat. The young woman was initially crowned in September 2004, you see, and owing to the 2005 event being postponed for four months, she remained the champion until January 2006.

Meanwhile, in a 2014 interview with AL.com, Downs reflected on how bizarre she had found the whole experience. She said, “It was surreal to stand on stage, on national television, and have my name called as Miss America and to walk the runway as they played ‘There She Is, Miss America.’ It is still surreal.”

Then, after belatedly handing over her crown to Miss Oklahoma Jennifer Berry, Downs switched her attention back to her medical career. She started studying at Birmingham’s University of Alabama School of Medicine, graduating in 2010, and finished an obstetrics and gynecology residency at the UAB Medical Center in 2014.

But Downs’ long and arduous route to a career in the medical field didn’t end there. She went on to study further at the UAB Medical Center, eventually concluding her reproductive endocrinology and infertility fellowship in 2017. Then, finally, the former Miss America winner was appointed as a physician at the University of Alabama-Birmingham Medical Center.

Yet Downs didn’t entirely leave the world of beauty pageantry behind. In 2014, you see, she was appointed as a judge for the closing night of the Miss America competition, which was held once again at Atlantic City’s Boardwalk Hall. And on this occasion, it was Miss New York Nina Davuluri who ultimately emerged victorious.

By this point, moreover, Downs had also become a mother. She had given birth to son Jack in 2010 – just two years after walking down the aisle with Andrew Gunn, whom she had met in college. Sadly, though, Downs and Gunn’s marriage didn’t end up going the distance, and the couple eventually headed for the divorce courts.

Nevertheless, Downs didn’t give up on love, and in 2017 she met up with a fellow online dater for drinks after the pair had forged a promising bond. This time around, though, the object of the one-time Miss America’s affections was a woman. And Downs would later tell People that she had fallen in love with Abbott Jones the moment that she had first laid eyes on her.

Thankfully, Jones reportedly felt similarly by the end of their date, which had seen the two bond over their passions for Harry Potter, champagne, traveling and music. And on Christmas Day that same year – just after they’d both watched a festive episode of Doctor Who – Downs made the ultimate romantic gesture: she asked Jones to marry her.

Downs had put a fair amount of work into the proposal, too, as she had created a video that showcased several of the most joyous moments in her and Jones’ relationship. Then, after screening the heartwarming clip, she presented the engagement ring to Jones – who fortunately accepted.

Yet while Downs may have been the one to pop the question, Jones still wanted to have the opportunity to make a unique gesture herself. So, after asking Downs’ son, Jack, for his blessing, Jones got to work recreating her and the erstwhile Miss America’s first date out of Lego. Family in tow, the happy couple then celebrated in the U.K. over the New Year period.

It should be noted, though, that same-sex marriage had only been made legal in Downs and Jones’ home state the year previously. What’s more, 2015 research by the Public Religion Research Institute found that only 32 percent of Alabama natives are in favor of the practice. Along with Mississippi, this makes Alabama the state with the joint-lowest numbers in support of marriage equality.

Speaking to AL.com in 2018, Alabama Citizens Action Program’s executive director Dr. Joe Godfrey attempted to explain these findings. The Birmingham-based lobbyist said, “It’s because there is more biblical literacy in Alabama than most other places. The Bible clearly teaches us that marriage is between one man and woman for life.”

Godfrey continued, “Everyone teaches that, [and] people grow up believing that. No one is willing to change the Bible around here.” And this point of view aligns with AL.com’s findings that Alabama possesses some of the highest levels of church attendance in America. Yet naturally some people are resisting change more than others.

In 2017, for example, Ballotpedia recorded that there were no fewer than seven counties in Alabama that had embarked on drastic measures to avoid giving out marriage licenses to same-sex couples. In essence, these parts of the state had simply refused to hand marriage licenses to anyone at all – regardless of their gender.

But thankfully Downs and Jones’ marriage occurred without a hitch, with the pair saying ‘I do’ at an April 2018 ceremony in the Birmingham Museum of Art. The wedding itself had the motif of ‘modern Southern romance,’ and as a result candlelight and neutrally colored flowers both went into creating the ideal atmosphere for the proceedings.

The beaming newlyweds got plenty of help in staging their dream day, too, with Invision Events assisting Jones and Downs in bringing their ideal ceremony to life. And the whole occasion was immaculately captured for posterity by acclaimed photographers Daniel and Kelli Taylor.

Speaking to wedding-focused site The Knot, Jones admitted that she had been overawed when she had initially set eyes on the wedding venue. She said, “When I first saw the space, I burst into tears. We’ve been planning and imagining this day for months, and to see all the details come together so beautifully was overwhelming.”

But what were the two brides wearing? Well, Jones said her vows in a bow-topped ballgown that had been designed by Sareh Nouri. Downs, on the other hand, decided on a snug-fitting dress by LianCarlo. And in a nod to tradition, both women were sporting white while walking down the aisle.

Perhaps the sweetest part of the whole occasion, though, was the fact that Downs’ son Jack pulled double duty on the day. Yes, the eight-year-old not only took on the pivotal role of best man, but he also ended up giving away his mom. And Jack may well have enjoyed the feast of food that was served up at the reception after his important day’s work.

Indeed, judging by the range of dishes on offer during the event, it’s unlikely that any of the 200 attendees went home hungry. Sticking with the Southern theme, the menu included such classics as buttermilk biscuits, mini chicken and waffles, fried green tomatoes and fried okra.

The range of drinks on offer were appropriate for the occasion, too. Guests could enjoy peach Bellinis made with fruit from Chilton County, for example, along with Moscow Mules that had a Southern flavor. Instead of the traditional vodka, you see, the so-called Kentucky Mule was concocted using bourbon.

Plus, of course, there was plenty of dancing. At one point, Jack showed off a few moves alongside his mom to Pharrell Williams’ “Happy.” Jones, meanwhile, chose “Isn’t She Lovely” by Stevie Wonder for her turn on the floor with her father, and she and Downs embarked on their first dance as wives to the Shania Twain ballad “From This Moment On.”

And the celebrations continued into the night, with beignets and yet more miniature chicken and biscuits being offered as a night-time treat. Then, when it came time for the two brides to leave the venue, they did so in style. As confetti poured down upon them, the newlyweds hopped in a Bentley to journey away as a married couple.

Speaking to People magazine after the event, Downs revealed that the day couldn’t have been any more perfect. She said, “I feel overjoyed to have found someone to share life’s adventures. The wedding was beautiful and special, but it was really just the beginning of our life together. I’m so lucky to have a wife who fills even small, everyday moments with great joy.”

Nonetheless, there was one particular aspect of the wedding that Downs admitted she will cherish more than others. She added, “Saying our vows in front of our family and friends and making that commitment to the love of my life was the most meaningful part of the day for me.” Her and Jones’ vows were made even more personal by the inclusion of lines from some of their favorite works of literature.

And several names from Downs’ beauty pageant past also went on to offer their congratulations to the happy couple. Gretchen Carlson – who won the 1989 Miss America before serving as the chairperson of the event’s board of directors – passed on her regards, for instance, while the Miss America Organization itself wished the pair “all the happiness the world” in a tweet.

But Downs concluded her interview with People magazine by revealing how she and Jones make such a good team. She explained, “We both want to live our intention, chase our passions and do good in the world. Deidre is more pure of heart and sensible. I’m more the risk-taker, so we balance each other out.”