Iris Mittenaere from Lille City in northern France beat 12 other finalists to take the Miss Universe crown Monday in a pageant held at the packed Mall of Asia Arena in the Philippines.
The victory of the 24-year-old dental surgery student was the first by a French contestant in more than 60 years. First and second runner-ups were Miss Haiti Raquel Pelissier and Miss Colombia Andrea Tovar. The top finalists were from Kenya, Indonesia, Mexico, Peru, Panama, Colombia, Philippines, Canada, Brazil, France, Haiti, Thailand and the U.S.
Host Steve Harvey joked on the show that he got the winner right this year, referring in jest to his mistaken announcement of Miss Colombia as the winner in the last pageant in Las Vegas more than a year ago.
