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Miss Teen USA has crowned a new winner off the back of a scandal-plagued few months that has rocked the pageantry world.
Addie Carver, a 17-year-old cheerleader, dance teacher and choreographer from Mississippi, was named Miss Teen USA on Thursday in a glitzy bash in Los Angeles.
In what has been hailed as her winning answer, Carver explained to judges that if she were to win the title, she would make it her “mission to know that every little girl who is just like me, once, is never alone” – a reference to her mental health struggles following the death of her father when she was 13.
Carver’s crowning moment comes after the title had been left unfilled when her predecessor UmaSofia Srivastava announced her shock resignation in May, just days after Miss USA Noelia Voight also relinquished the crown.
Voigt and Sravistava both issued lengthy statements online detailing their decisions to resign, with Sravistava writing that her personal values “no longer fully align with the direction of the organization.”
Voigt was the first Venezuelan-American woman to win Miss USA, and Sravistava, 17, was the first Mexican-Indian American to win Miss Teen USA.
It marked the first time in 70 years of the competition, which was previously owned by Donald Trump, that both winning queens resigned their positions.
Miss Teen USA 2023 runner-up Stephanie Skinner stood in solidarity with the two beauty queens, as she turned down organizers when they gave her the opportunity to pick up Srivastava’s crown.
“In light of recent events, I have decided to decline the title of Miss Teen USA,” the then-19-year-old wrote on Instagram. “This is not an easy decision. I hope for respect of my choice as this was a decision I never asked to make.”
She went on to acknowledge that her “word is everything”, before sharing some of the upcoming responsibilities that she’s now focused on. “I gave my commitment to a global research career opportunity in Thailand that will require me to live abroad for the summer,” she added.
The turmoil in the famed pageant organization came amid claims of mistreatment and “mental abuse” brought by the mothers of Miss USA and Miss Teen USA as well as former employees.
The controversies meant the proceedings had to break with years of tradition, as Carver was crowned by 28-year-old Savannah Gankiewicz, winner of Miss Hawaii USA 2023 and runner-up-turned-winner of Miss USA 2023, after she accepted the position following Voight’s resignation.
