Aussie-born Miss Universe is crowned

Miss Universe 2018 has been crowned and it’s gone to Australian-born Miss Philippines, Catriona Gray.

Catriona, who has over 1.2 million Instagram followers and grew up in Cairns, beat first runner up Tamaryn Green, from South Africa, to take the top spot.

Unfortunately Australia’s contestant, Francesca Hung, finished outside of the top ten, but we’re sure Catriona’s former classmates at Trinity Anglican School will be calling it a win for Australia nonetheless.

Catriona had long been a competition favourite and dazzled in the evening gown round of the competition, which was held in Thailand. She’s a popular singer, with her song “We’re in this Together” currently topping the charts in the Philippines, and is also famous for walking in slow motion, a trick that has been nicknamed the “lava walk”.

Taking to Instagram to thank her team for their hard work, Catriona shared a memory of her mum.

“When I was 13, my mum told me ‘Honey, I dreamt of you winning @missuniverse in a red dress,'” she wrote. “At that time I thought nothing of it, and today my mother’s dream came true”.

As part of her time on the Miss Universe stage, Catriona discussed her work in low-income areas of the Philippines, saying she tries to “find the beauty” in desolate circumstances.

When asked how she would act as Miss Universe, she said, “I think if I could teach also people to be grateful we could have a great world where negative would not foster and children would have a smile on their face.”

She also had to answer some wider questions, including a query about her thoughts on legalised marijuana.

“I’m for it being used in a medical use but not so for recreational use, because I think if people argue about what about alcohol and cigarettes, then everything is good in moderation,” she said.

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