KACI Fennell last night placed fifth in the 63rd staging of the Miss Universe pageant which was won by Miss Colombia Paulina Vega.
Miss USA Nia Sanchez was named first runner-up in the pageant that Jamaicans watched with high anticipation that Fennell would have won.
Jamaicans erupted with joy when the 22-year-old Fennell was named in the top 15 in the early stages of the pageant held at Florida International University Arena in Doral, Miami.
The celebrations grew louder when she was the first contestant placed in the top 10, followed by the contestants from Agrentina, Ukraine, The Philippines, Colombia, Spain, The Netherlands, Venezuela, Australia, and USA.
When Fennell appeared in the evening dress competition she was described as “immaculate” by one of the pageant’s hosts.
Later, when she was named in the top five, along with the contestants from USA, The Netherlands, Ukraine, and Colombia, Jamaicans cheered even louder.
In the interview section, when each of the top five contestants was asked the following question submitted by viewers on Facebook: ‘What is the greatest contribution of your country to the entire world?’ Fennell pointed to reggae superstar Bob Marley and track legend Usain Bolt. Her answer elicited loud and sustained applause from her Jamaican supporters in the audience.
However, their hope turned to despair when Fennell was announced as the fourth runner-up.
Throughout her year-long reign, Miss Universe will wear a new crown designed by pageant sponsor DIC.
“The new crown was designed to blend the Czech roots of DIC with the beautiful skyline of New York City, home of the Miss Universe Organisation and its titleholders,” the pageant website states.
“Craftsmen spent over 3,000 hours to create this beautiful and timeless crown with a very unique infrastructure inspired by design elements of various royal crowns throughout history. The crown symbolises and expresses the beauty, stability, confidence and power of women around the world,” the website adds.