Miss France 2021 was the 91st edition of the Miss France pageant. The competition was held on 19 December 2020 at Puy du Fou in Les Epesses, Pays de la Loire. Clémence Botino of Guadeloupe crowned Amandine Petit of Normandy as her successor at the end of the event. Petit represented France at Miss Universe 2020.
Despite only being the 91st edition, the 2021 edition was celebrated as the centenary of Miss France, as the competition was first held in 1920, before being paused from 1922 to 1926 and 1941–46, the latter due to World War II.
This was the second time that Miss France was held at Puy du Fou and in the Pays de la Loire region after Miss France 2009.
Background Location On 2 September 2020, it was confirmed by the Miss France Committee that Miss France 2021 would be held on 12 December 2020 at Puy du Fou in Les Epesses, Pays de la Loire. This would be the second time the competition has been held at Puy du Fou, following Miss France 2009. The competition was later postponed to 19 December after Emmanuel Macron announced a nationwide lockdown in France for the month of November due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
While the Miss France contestants typically embark on an overseas trip during preparation for the competition, their planned trip to Guadeloupe was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and they instead traveled to Versailles, Yvelines to visit the Palace of Versailles.
Selection of contestants Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the region of Tahiti withdrew from the competition after deciding to cancel their regional pageant for Miss France 2021. The 2021 edition saw the return of Wallis and Futuna to Miss France; the region had only competed four times in history, and not since 2005.
On 14 October, it was confirmed that Saint Martin and Saint Barthélemy would not compete after their selected candidate Naïma Dessout was disqualified by the Miss France Committee for having previously participated in a nude photoshoot. Additionally, no representative was selected to replace Dessout at Miss France. This came after Anastasia Salvi, the original winner of Miss Franche-Comté, resigned amidst a nude photo scandal, and Anaëlle Guimbi, a competitor in Miss Guadeloupe, was disqualified ahead of the regional pageant for nude photos taken in support of a breast cancer awareness campaign.
Results
Placement Contestant Miss France 2021 – Amandine Petit 1st Runner-Up – April Benayoum 2nd Runner-Up – Lara Gautier 3rd Runner-Up – Aurélie Roux 4th Runner-Up – Lou-Anne Lorphelin Top 15 – Lyna Boyer (5th Runner-Up) – Lara Lourenço (6th Runner-Up) – Kenza Andreze-Louison – Julie Tagliavacca – Justine Dubois – Leïla Veslard – Noémie Leca – Anlia Charifa – Anaïs Roux – Léa Graniou
Special awards
Prize Contestant General Culture Award – Lou-Anne Lorphelin (17.5/20) Elegance Award – Illana Barry Best in Regional Costume – Léa Graniou Best in Swimsuit – Lara Lourenço Miss Photogenic – Laura Cornillot Miss Congeniality – Diane Febvay Miss Good Manners – Tara de Mets Catwalk Prize – Kenza Andreze-Louison
Scoring Preliminaries A jury composed of partners (internal and external) of the Miss France Committee selected fifteen delegates during an interview that took place on 16 December to advance to the semifinals.
Top 15 In the top fifteen, a 50/50 split vote between the official jury and voting public selected five delegates to advance to the top five. Each delegate was awarded an overall score of 1 to 15 from the jury and public, and the five delegates with the highest combined scores advanced to the top five. The delegates with the sixth and seventh highest combined scores were afterwards designated as the fifth and sixth runners-up, respectively, despite not advancing in the competition. In the case of a tie, the jury vote prevailed. Contestant Public Jury Total 12 15 27 14 12 26 15 11 26 Côte d'Azur 10 14 24 11 13 24 13 7 20 9 9 18 8 9 17 7 7 14 6 7 13 2 10 12 5 7 12 4 3 7 3 3 6 1 3 4
Top five In the top five, a 50/50 split vote between the official jury and voting public determined which contestant was declared Miss France. This was the first time the jury could vote in the top five since Miss France 2010. Each contestant was ranked from first to fifth by the jury and public, and the two scores were combined to create a total score. In the case of a tie, the public vote prevailed. If this rule change had not occurred, Normandy still would have won, while Alsace would have been first runner-up, followed by Provence, Burgundy, and then Côte d'Azur. #CandidatePublicJuryTotal152723473 Côte d'Azur15644155235
Pageant Format While the edition was not given a titled theme like in previous years, on 4 December 2020, it was announced that the theme for the 2021 competition would revolve around French influence in the world, with competition rounds inspired by aspects of French culture and history that have received international popularity and recognition. On 15 December, it was announced that instead of the winner being decided by public voting as it had been since Miss France 2010, there would instead be a rule change where the winner would be decided by a 50/50 split of jury voting and public voting, much like how the top five has been chosen in past editions.
The 29 contestants were initially separated into three groups, two consisting of ten contestants and one of nine, with each group taking part in an initial presentation round. The three presentation rounds were themed after the Palace of Versailles, French cuisine, and the Moulin Rouge, respectively. Afterwards, the 29 contestants presented their regional costumes, created by local designers from their home regions. The 29 contestants subsequently participated in the one-piece swimsuit round, inspired by French cinema.
After the one-piece swimsuit round, the top fifteen were announced. The top fifteen then competed in the two-piece swimsuit round, inspired by Bastille Day and French landmarks such as the Eiffel Tower and Arc de Triomphe. After the two-piece swimsuit round, the top five were announced. The top five then presented their evening gowns, in a round inspired by fairy tales, and then participated in the final question round. After the final question round, the top five participated in their final presentation round, inspired by French art, before the final results were revealed.
Judges To celebrate the centenary of Miss France, the Miss France Committee announced that the jury would consist of only former Miss France titleholders. Iris Mittenaere (President of the Jury) – Miss France 2016 and Miss Universe 2016 from Nord-Pas-de-Calais Patricia Barzyk – Miss France 1980 from Franche-Comté Flora Coquerel – Miss France 2014 from Centre-Val de Loire Muguette Fabris – Miss France 1963 from Île-de-France Mareva Georges – Miss France 1991 from Tahiti Élodie Gossuin – Miss France 2001 and Miss Europe 2001 from Picardy Linda Hardy – Miss France 1992 from Pays de la Loire Nathalie Marquay – Miss France 1987 from Alsace Sonia Rolland – Miss France 2000 from Burgundy
Contestants The 29 delegates were: Region Contestant Age Height Hometown PlacementNotesAurélie Roux24Spechbach-le-Bas3rd Runner-UpLeïla Veslard18Saint-MesminTop 15Géromine Prique21Clermont-FerrandLou-Anne Lorphelin23Charnay-lès-Mâcon4th Runner-UpSister of Marine Lorphelin, Miss France 2013Julie Foricher23Relecq-KerhuonCloé Delavalle23Chartres Gwenegann Saillard21Sainte-Savine Noémie Leca19CargèseTop 15 Côte d'AzurLara Gautier22Contes2nd Runner-UpCoralie Gandelin23La ChailleuseOriginally the first runner-up, but assumed the title after winner Anastasia Salvi resigned two days after her crowning.Héléneschka Horth23Awala-YalimapoKenza Andreze-Louison20Baie-Mahault Top 15Lara Lourenço19Saint-Maur-des-FossésTop 15Illana Barry19Aigues-MortesLéa Graniou20LimogesTop 15Diane Febvay19PiblangeSéphorah Azur23SchœlcherAnlia Charifa23DzaoudziTop 15Emma Arrebot-Natou19TournefeuilleLouisa Salvan19Mont-DoreLaura Cornillot24EnnevelinAmandine Petit23BourguébusMiss France 2021Julie Tagliavacca24MaulévrierTop 15Tara de Mets21ClermontJustine Dubois24AngoulêmeTop 15April Benayoum21Éguilles1st Runner-UpLyna Boyer21La PossessionTop 15Anaïs Roux23LyonTop 15Mylène Halemai19Fineveke
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