(VNF) - H’Hen Nie from E De ethnic minority group was crowned Miss Universe Vietnam 2017 on the final night of the pageant which concluded in Nha Trang city, in the central province of Khanh Hoa on January 6^th.

Born in 1992, this beauty comes from the Central Highland province of Dak Lak and is now a freelance model in Ho Chi Minh City.

H’Hen Nie, 25, becomes Miss Universe Vietnam 2017. (Photo courtesy of organiser)

Nie overcame 41 other contestants across the country to secure the crown. With a toned body, standing at 172 centimeres tall and with measurements of 84-60-93, she also won the title sea pageant beauty. She was consistently in the list of outstanding girls of the competition thanks to her light brown complexion, athletic shape, short hair and powerful strutting skills. Currently, she works as a model in HCM City.

She received a crown worth VND 2.7 billion (USD 118.530) together with a cash prize of VND 200 million (USD 8,800). The beauty is scheduled to represent Vietnam at this year’s Miss Universe.

The title of first runner-up went to Hoang Thi Thuy while the title of second runner-up was awarded to Mau Thi Thanh Thuy.

Thùy was the champion of the 2011 cycle of Vietnam’s Next Top Model, a modeling reality television series, while Thuy was the winner of the show’s 2013 cycle. Both of them have had experience of walking the catwalk at international events. One of the runners-up will compete at the Miss Universe 2019.

The organisers also awarded other titles including the talented beauty, sports beauty, friendly beauty, people’s choice beauty, Ao Dai beauty and photogenic beauty.

Along with Miss and two runners-up, Bui Thanh Hang and Tieu Ngoc Linh were among the top five of the competition.

Miss Universe Vietnam 2017 H’Hen Nie (centre) and Hoang Thi Thuy (left) and Mau Thi Thanh Thuy (right). (Photo courtesy of organiser)

Forty-two contestants from across the country strutted their stuff on the final night of Miss Universe Vietnam 2017. They displayed catwalk skills in traditional Vietnamese long robes, evening gowns, and swimsuits.

This year is just the third time Miss Universe Vietnam has been organised to select the country’s representatives to attend international pageants, with the other two times being in 2008 and 2015.

The 2017 edition of the competition was suspended for two months by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism in November after it drew criticism for holding the semifinal in typhoon-hit Nha Trang.

In the interview round for the Top Five, H’Hen Nie picked a question, asking what she could do, as Miss Universe Vietnam, to encourage people to use social media in a more positive way.

“Social media is a two-edged knife with both positive and negative impacts. I want to stress that there are many other more beautiful things in life for us to treasure, so let’s cut down on our use of social media so we can be closer to one another,” Nie answered.

In the last interview round, the Top Three answered one common question about their future community projects. Nie said she would focus on orphans in the Central Highlands province of Lam Dong, women and HIV sufferers because they are vulnerable people, in her opinion./.

VNF