- The 2022 Miss USA pageant will be held at Grand Sierra Resort and Spa to pay tribute to Cheslie Kryst.
- Kryst was crowned Miss USA at the same venue in 2019.
- Kryst died by suicide on January 30.
The 2022 Miss USA pageant will be held at the same venue where Cheslie Kryst was crowned queen.
Kryst died by suicide on January 30. She was 30 years old.
To honor Kryst's memory, Miss USA will host the 2022 pageant at the Grand Sierra Resort and Spa in Reno, Nevada, where Kryst was crowned in 2019, as Miss USA shared on Instagram. The pageant will take place on October 3, and will air on FYI.
The president of the Miss USA Organization, Crystle Stewart, shared her thoughts on the choice of venue with E! News.
"In 2019, I had the honor and privilege of judging the Miss USA pageant at the Grand Sierra Resort and Spa in Reno and crowning former Miss USA Cheslie Kryst," Stewart said in the statement. "In honor of Cheslie's memory, we found it to be a fitting, full-circle moment that this year, the 2022 Miss USA pageant will be held at the same venue in Reno, Nevada, not only as a way to keep Cheslie's legacy alive but also to pay homage to the great city of Reno."
Kryst won Miss USA while representing North Carolina. She went on to place in the top 10 for Miss Universe in the same year.
In 2019 when Kryst won, she became part of an iconic quartet, as it marked the first time Miss Universe, Miss USA, Miss Teen USA, and Miss America were all women of color.
"I just think this is an important moment," she told Insider at the time. "And maybe people can carry this inspiration into other areas of their lives."
"Her great light was one that inspired others around the world with her beauty and strength. She cared, she loved, she laughed, and she shined," Kryst's family said of her at the time of her death. "Cheslie embodied love and served others, whether through her work as an attorney fighting for social justice, as Miss USA, and as a host on EXTRA."
"But most importantly, as a daughter, sister, friend, mentor, and colleague — we know her impact will live on," her family's statement went on to say.
Kryst's mother, Alice Simpkins, later shared on Red Table Talk that Kryst had been struggling with depression since her early 20s.
"I knew Cheslie was suffering from depression. I didn't know the severity of it," Simpkins said. "I noticed smiles were a little forced. And I thought, maybe it's just stress."
She also shared that Kryst had attempted suicide once before her death in January.