- Contestants are currently in Atlanta, Georgia, preparing for Miss Universe 2019. The finals will air on December 8.
- To celebrate, we’ve found hilarious yet heartwarming photos of these pageant stars finding out they’ve won the title of most beautiful woman in the universe.
- Some cry, some scream, some are shocked – but all are equally amazing.
- Visit Insider’s homepage for more stories.
Miss Universe is arguably the biggest pageant on the planet – it’s no wonder that the winners can be overcome with emotion once they win the crown for their country.
In honor of the 2019 Miss Universe pageant on December 8, we found some of the best reaction shots of contestants finding out they’ve won Miss Universe.
1961: Miss Germany, Marlene Schmidt
Schmidt is the first and only Miss Germany to win the crown.
1970: Miss Puerto Rico, Marisol Malaret
Malaret became a grandmother for the first time in May 2018.
1971: Miss Lebanon, Georgina Rizk
Rizk was the first woman from the Middle East to win Miss Universe.
1976: Miss Israel, Rina Messinger
Messinger stayed in the US for four years after her reign as Miss Universe ended.
1980: Miss USA, Shawn Weatherly
Weatherly went on to appear in the first season of "Baywatch."
1981: Miss Venezuela, Irene Sáez
Sáez went on to be elected governor of the Venezuelan state Nueva Esparta.
1983: Miss New Zealand, Lorraine Downes
Downes won the New Zealand version of "Dancing with the Stars" in 2006.
1985: Miss Puerto Rico, Deborah Carthy-Deu
Carthy-Deu went on to star in the telenovela "El Cisne Blanco," or "The White Swan," in English.
1987: Miss Chile, Cecilia Bolocco
Bolocco was the first Chilean Miss Universe.
1988: Miss Thailand, Porntip Nakhirunkanok
Nakhirunkanok was the first woman to win both the Miss Universe title and Best National Costume.
1989: Miss Netherlands, Angela Visser
Visser appeared in a season one episode of "Friends," called "The One Where the Monkey Gets Away."
1993: Miss Puerto Rico, Dayanara Torres
Torres was married to singer Marc Anthony from 2000 to 2004. He married Jennifer Lopez the week after their split was finalized.
1994: Miss India, Sushmita Sen
Sen was the first Indian woman to win the pageant.
1996: Miss Venezuela, Alicia Machado
Machado blasted then-pageant owner Donald Trump during his 2016 presidential campaign for body-shaming her during her reign.
1997: Miss USA, Brook Lee
Lee was the oldest woman to win, at 26 years and 128 days old.
1998: Miss Trinidad and Tobago, Wendy Fitzwilliam
Fitzwilliam was the first contestant to win the swimsuit competition while wearing a bikini.
1999: Miss Botswana, Mpule Kwelagobe
1999 was the first time Botswana was represented at the pageant, and consequently their first win.
2000: Miss India, Lara Dutta
Dutta was the second-ever Indian Miss Universe, and the last Miss India to win the crown.
2001: Miss Puerto Rico, Denise Quiñones
Quiñones became the director of Miss Universe Puerto Rico in February 2018.
2002: Miss Russia, Oxana Fedorova
Four months after she was crowned, Fedorova was dethroned for being "unable to fulfill her duties." Apparently she was too busy to travel much, and was replaced the first runner-up, Miss Panama, Justine Pasek.
2003: Miss Dominican Republic, Amelia Vega
Vega was the first delegate from the Dominican Republic to become Miss Universe.
2004: Miss Australia, Jennifer Hawkins
Hawkins currently runs two successful brands, Cozi by Jennifer Hawkins swimwear and the Jbronze by Jennifer Hawkins line of tanning products.
2005: Miss Canada, Natalie Glebova
Glebova published her second book in November 2018, "I Am Winning: A Guide to Personal Empowerment."
2006: Miss Puerto Rico, Zuleyka Rivera
Rivera had a resurgence in popularity after starring in the music video for "Despacito," which is currently the most-viewed video on YouTube.
2007: Miss Japan, Riyo Mori
Mori auditioned for the role of Yaeko in "Heroes."
2008: Miss Venezuela, Dayana Mendoza
Mendoza appeared on "Celebrity Apprentice" in 2012.
2009: Miss Venezuela, Stefanía Fernández
Fernandez was the first Miss Universe to be crowned by a compatriot - her predecessor was also Miss Venezuela.
2010: Miss Mexico, Ximena Navarrete
Navarrete has appeared in various telenovelas since her reign ended.
2011: Miss Angola, Leila Lopes
Lopes and her husband, former football player Osi Umenyiora, welcomed their first child in June 2018.
2012: Miss USA, Olivia Culpo
Culpo won Miss Rhode Island, Miss USA, and Miss Universe all in the span of 15 months.
2013: Miss Venezuela, Gabriela Isler
Venezuela is second only to the US in terms of Miss Universe winners - the country has had seven.
2014: Miss Colombia, Paulina Vega
The president of Colombia declared the day of Vega's win a national holiday.
2015: Miss Philippines, Pia Wurtzbach
Wurtzbach originally thought she was runner-up, after host Steve Harvey accidentally called out the wrong name.
2016: Miss France, Iris Mittenaere
Mittenaere became the host of France's version of "American Ninja Warrior" in 2018.
2017: Miss South Africa, Demi-Leigh Nel-Peters
Nel-Peters announced her engagement to NFL player Tim Tebow in January 2019.
2018: Miss Philippines, Catriona Gray
Gray was crowned on December 16, 2018. She will pass the crown on to her successor on December 8.
- Read more:
- The wildest outfits in the history of Miss Universe's National Costume Show
- Here's how Miss America, Miss USA, and Miss Universe are different
- These 5 countries have produced the most Miss Universe winners
- Miss Universe paid tribute to its first transgender competitor, Miss Spain, and made viewers emotional