Miss Utah wins Miss USA for the first time since 1960
Noelia Voigt, Miss Utah, was crowned Miss USA on Friday night at the 2023 pageant in Reno, Nevada. This is the first time since 1960 (when Linda Bement won) that Miss Utah has held the title of Miss USA.
By winning, she became the first Venezuelan American woman to be named Miss USA, according to Today.
The pageant took place at the Grand Sierra Resort in Nevada. Voigt competed against 50 other contestants to win the title. Savannah Gankiewicz of Hawaii was the first runner-up in the pageant, CNN reported.
Voigt is a licensed esthetician and model. She is the author of a children’s book, “Maddie the Brave,” and attended University of Alabama, per Today.
In her answer to the final question, Voigt talked about how her background would help her contribute to the Miss USA organization.
“As a bilingual Venezuelan-American woman, I plan to connect with that community of people because the United States of America is a diverse country and a Miss USA needs to be able to represent every community no matter their background, their race, their ethnicity, anything, and I would like to be that Miss USA,” Voigt said, per Today.
In a previous Instagram post, Voigt spoke about the support she has received from the Venezuelan community in Utah.
“I am so grateful for the outpouring of love and support I have received from the Venezuelan community in Utah and across the world,” she wrote on Instagram. “... I am truly looking forward to breaking barriers and bridging the gap between communities by being able to speak Spanish and connect with the large Hispanic population in Utah.”
Voigt was born in Florida and later moved to Utah. She has won Miss Teen Florida and Miss Alabama Collegiate America, and participated in four other pageants before she ran for Miss Utah, according to Women’s Wear Daily.
Ahead of the competition, Voigt wrote on Instagram, “God’s timing is always right. I still can’t believe that I am Miss Utah USA 2023 and will be competing at Miss USA later this year! I took the biggest risk of my life thus far by moving across the country to chase this dream of mine and it paid off in the best way.”
