Miss Grand International 2021 was the ninth Miss Grand International pageant, held at the Show DC hall, Show DC Mega Complex in Bangkok, Thailand, on 4 December 2021.
Abena Appiah of the United States crowned Nguyễn Thúc Thùy Tiên of Vietnam as her successor at the end of the event. The winner received a cash prize of US$60,000 as a reward.
Background Location and date On 31 August 2021, the Miss Grand International organization publicized the promoted media on their social platforms citing that the grand final of the 9th Miss Grand International will take place in Phuket, Thailand, on 4 December 2021, while the ancillary events will commence prior, including; the national costume parade, the swimwear competition, and the preliminary round. All such events were set to launch after the registration date, which was scheduled for 17 November. However, the COVID-19 pandemic in Phuket caused all convention centers and theaters in the province, which once had the potential to host the important event, to be abandoned, and suffered a facility shortage. As a result, the organizer inevitably decided to reschedule most of the main events except the swimsuit competition, to be held in Bangkok instead.
Later on 6 October 2021, the organization additionally detailed the schedule of the preliminary activities on the island of Phuket as well as the main event in Bangkok; however, some ancillary activities was cancelled due to the opposing political views between the organizer and the pro-military government local community; which caused the application for property use to be revoked. The local government also declined to facilitate the event arrangement in the province.
Selection of participants Of all fifty-nine participating candidates, only sixteen were determined through the Miss Grand national pageants, including Cambodia, Chile, Belgium, Ecuador, France, Italy, Japan, Liberia, Nicaragua, South Korea, Spain, Malaysia, Paraguay, Puerto Rico, Northern Ireland, and United States, while the representatives of Albania, England, Kosovo, Scotland, and Wales, who were also elected through the Miss Grand national pageants, did not enter the international contest for unknown reasons.
Three countries, the Dominican Republic, Mauritius, and Germany, sent their other pageant's main winner to compete. The remaining candidates were either appointed or obtained the title as a supplemental award at other national pageants, such as Manika Sheokhand of India, who was named Miss Grand India 2021 after finishing as the first runner-up in Femina Miss India 2020.
Initially, seventy-one contestants confirmed their participation but twelve withdrew, mostly due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Meanwhile, the original representatives of Argentina, Germany, Japan, Liberia, Nigeria, Panama, and Russia, were replaced by their runners-up or the appointed candidates after the resignation, dethronement, or changing of national licensee.
Pageant format Based on all accumulated scores, which included the scores from the preliminary round, the closed-door interviews, and other pageant activities, determined the twenty semifinalists who advanced to compete at the sportswear competition, in which the final nine finalists were elected. Eventually, nine semi-finalists, including the winner of the Miss Popular vote which was determined through public voting, completed the top ten and competed in the long gown, and the speech competitions. Afterward, the five finalists were chosen who then qualified for the question-and-answer round, where the winner and all four runners-up were determined. Results Placements PlacementContestantMiss Grand International 2021 – Nguyễn Thúc Thùy Tiên1st runner-up – Andrea Aguilera2nd runner-up – Lorena Rodrigues3rd runner-up – Vivianie Díaz Arroyo4th runner-up – Jeanè Van DamTop 10 – Sothida Pokimtheng § – Adriana Moya – Sophia Louise Rogan – Alba Dunkerbeck – Vanessa CoelloTop 20 – Márcia de Menezes – Angolina Amores – Mariana Jaramillo – Stephanie Medina – Elodie Sirulnick – Luisa Victoria Malz – Manika Sheokand – Lishalliny Kanaran – Amara Shune Lei – Nathalie Yasmin Mogbelzada – Patience Christopher § – Voted into the Top 10 by viewers and awarded as Miss Popular Vote
Special awards AwardContestantBest in Evening Gown – Indy JohnsonBest in Swimsuit – Vivianie Díaz-ArroyoBest National Costume – Márcia de Menezes – Lishalliny Kanaran – Samantha BatallanosMiss Popular Vote - Sothida Pokimtheng
Contestants Fifty-nine contestants competed for the title. Country/Territory Contestant Hometown AngolaMárcia de Menezes27Luanda ArgentinaFlorence Melanie De Palo24Buenos Aires ArmeniaKristina Ayanian24Boston AustraliaAngolina Amores27Sydney BangladeshMarjana Chowdhury28Sylhet BelgiumZomkey Tenzin20Flemish Brabant BoliviaEloísa Gutiérrez25Sucre BrazilLorena Rodrigues26Juiz de Fora CambodiaSothida Pokimtheng23Battambang CanadaOlga Bykadorova27Montreal ChileVanessa Echeverría17Calama ColombiaMariana Jaramillo23Barranquilla Costa RicaAdriana Moya27San José CubaGeysel Vaillant23Havana CuraçaoKimberly Fernandes25Willemstad Czech RepublicBarbora Aglerová22Prague Dominican RepublicStephanie Medina22New York EcuadorAndrea Aguilera20Ventanas EgyptShahy Hamdy25Cairo El SalvadorIris Guerra25Santa Ana FranceElodie Sirulnick24Paris GermanyLuisa Victoria Malz18Berlin GuatemalaMaría José Sazo21Escuintla HaitiLynn Saint-Germain27Austin HondurasCelia Monterrosa25Santa Bárbara Hong KongSen Yang22Hong Kong IndiaManika Sheokhand25Haryana IndonesiaSophia Rogan19Bali ItalyMarika Nardozi21Lazio JapanChika Mizuno25Tokyo LaosDaomixay Phachansitthy23Savannakhet LiberiaHajamaya Mulbah22Monrovia MalaysiaLishalliny Karanan24Selangor MauritiusNaomi Buan21Curepipe MexicoMariana Macías Ornelas24Chapala MyanmarAmara Shune Lei25MandalayRonali Amatya25Kathmandu NetherlandsNathalie Yasmin Mogbelzada24Amsterdam NicaraguaEpifanía Solís22Managua NigeriaPatience Christopher23Kogi Northern IrelandShannon McCullagh25Belfast PakistanRamina Ashfaque28Karachi PanamaKatie Nairobi Caicedo20Madrid ParaguayAndrea Jimena Sosa21Hohenau PeruSamantha Batallanos26Lima Samantha Panlilio25Cavite City PortugalAna Laura Ferreira19Leiria Puerto RicoVivianie Díaz-Arroyo23San Juan RussiaAlesia Semerenko27Moscow Siberia Kristina Shenknekht25Moscow South AfricaJeanè Van Dam20Johannesburg South KoreaLee Ji-ho24Seoul SpainAlba Dunkerbeck19Canary Islands Sri LankaAnna-Marie Ondaatje21Toronto SwedenJennie Frondell25Tenhult ThailandIndy Johnson23Pathum Thani United StatesMadison Lynn Callaghan25Charlotte Vanessa Coello26Maturín Nguyễn Thúc Thùy Tiên 23 Ho Chi Minh City
Vietnam / Thailand controversy During the speech round of the top 10 finalists, Nguyễn Thúc Thùy Tiên of Vietnam, said in Thai: Make the world a better place for everyone, while raising a pro-democracy three-finger salute. This displeased supporters of the Thai military government, who presented letters of protest to the Vietnamese embassy in Bangkok. They said that her action interfered with Thai internal affairs, as the Constitutional Court of Thailand had determined that using this three-finger salute supported the overthrow of the Thai regime. Vietnam's Ministry of Foreign Affairs did not respond, causing some Thai government groups to state that they should take action and remind Thùy Tiên to refrain from making any statements that may affect Thailand–Vietnam relations.
Radio Free Asia reported that Thùy Tiên's speech with the pro-democracy three-finger salute had been censored by the Vietnamese government. After her win, Thùy Tiên received much public support for her action as seen in the Vietnamese media, but most was quickly removed, no longer accessible, or the details unmentioned. In many press-release videos, this section of the contest was also removed.
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