The belle of the ball! Miss Universe crowns its first French winner in 64 years in the Philippines (and yes, Steve Harvey is sure this time)
Iris Mittenaere from northern city Lille was crowned Miss Universe on Monday in the Philippines, local time
The 23-year-old dental student was speechless as the outgoing winner from the Philippines crowned her
Mittenaere said in her profile she would 'advocate for dental and oral hygiene' if she took home the title
Miss Haiti, 25, a survivor of the 2010 earthquake that destroyed her hometown, was named first runner up
Miss Colombia, 23-year-old Andrea Tovar, was second runner up of the competition held at a mall in Manila
By Associated Press and Clemence Michallon For Dailymail.com
PUBLISHED: 03:50 GMT, 30 January 2017 | UPDATED: 04:40 GMT, 30 January 2017
23-year-old dental student from France won the Miss Universe crown Monday in the Philippines, local time, bringing her country its first win in the annual pageant in 64 years.
Iris Mittenaere from the city of Lille in northern France said in reply to a final question from pageant host Steve Harvey that she would be honored if she just landed among the three finalists. But she was visibly stunned when she was announced the winner among the field of 86 contestants.
Mittenaere was speechless and put her hands on her face as the outgoing winner from the Philippines, Pia Wurtzbach, crowned her as the crowd erupted in cheers and applause at the packed Mall of Asia Arena by Manila Bay. In her profile, she said she would 'advocate for dental and oral hygiene' if she took home the crown.
As he closed the ceremony, the American comedian host declared: 'This is Steve Harvey, I got it right' - joking about the gaffe that saw him mistakenly announcing Miss Colombia as the winner of the last pageant in Las Vegas more than a year ago.
Iris Mittenaere of France is crowned the new Miss Universe 2016 by 2015 Miss Universe Pia Wurtzbach in coronation on Monday
In the final question to the top three finalists, the candidate were asked to cite a failure in their life and explain what they learned from the debacle.
'I've failed several times in my life,' Mittenaere said without elaborating. 'When you fail, you have to be elevated and you have to try again and keep going ... I have failed before but for me this is the great first opportunity,' she added.
Miss Haiti, Raquel Pelissier, a 25-year-old survivor of the devastating 2010 earthquake that destroyed her hometown, was named first runner up while Miss Colombia, 23-year-old, Andrea Tovar, was second runner up.
'I survived the earthquake,' Pelissier said in reply to the same question, citing the quake the Haiti government estimated to have killed more than 300,000 people and displaced more than 1.5 million others. 'I felt I was failing myself because I was not living my dreams ... But I chose to be a very positive person, and learned a great lesson from it because if I am here today, it is because I am living my dreams.'
Iris Mittenaere of France blows kisses to the crowd after being proclaimed the new Miss Universe 2016 in coronation on Monday
Iris Mittenaere of France waves to the crowd shortly after being proclaimed the new Miss Universe 2016
Iris Mittenaere of France reacts shortly after being proclaimed the new Miss Universe 2016
Iris Mittenaere of France, right, and Raquel Pelissier of Haiti hold hands moments before the winner was announced in the Miss Universe 2016 coronation
Miss Universe 2016 Iris Mittenaere, right, of France is hugged by Miss Universe 2015 Pia Wurtzbach
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4170536/Miss-France-crowned-Miss-Universe-Philippines.html#ixzz4XDWKQt3g
