Yasmina Zaytoun, first runner-up in the Miss World contest. (Credit: Zaytoun's Instagram account)
BEIRUT — On Saturday, Miss Lebanon 2022 Yasmina Zaytoun came second at Miss World 2023, giving Lebanese people a glimpse of hope and happiness amid the ongoing security and socio-economic challenges that the country has been facing.
It is the first time in history that Lebanon has reached this stage in Miss World; Miss Lebanon (1997) Joelle Behlok finished in the top 10 and Miss Lebanon (2015) Valerie Abou Chacra in the top 5.
Watched by millions of television viewers around the world, the election of this year's most beautiful woman in the world took place in Bombay. Succeeding Poland's Karolina Bielawska, Miss Czech Republic, Krystyna Pyszkova, was crowned Miss World.
Yasmina Zaytoun, 22 years old, is an ambassador for the Lebanese Food Bank and the Children's Cancer Center in Lebanon. She is from the village of Kfar Shouba in the Hasbaya district of southern Lebanon. Right now, she is studying journalism at Notre Dame University.
L'Orient Today contacted Zaytoun on Monday for more details about her journey.
Can you tell us more about your journey in Miss World?
I am so proud of what I did. It's been a year that I have been preparing [and training] for it and working on every detail so that I meet this responsibility. There was no monitor, guide or someone to help me, I did everything from scratch. The women were so good with me in Miss World. I was able to prove that Arab women can [achieve whatever they want to accomplish.] I let the world know who are the Lebanese people and what they can do. I was not afraid at all to raise my voice and to talk about causes that many people might be afraid to talk about.
What's your message to Lebanese people, especially young women?
You are fighters. You are strong and you have dreams and ambitions that the world [can not] expect. You can reach anything you wish for when you believe in yourselves. I am so proud that I was able to facilitate the road for people who will come after me so that they don't feel underrepresented.
As a woman from southern Lebanon, do you have something to say regarding what's happening there?
As a woman from South Lebanon, I want to say that I carried the South and Lebanon in my heart and I talked about [our causes] because I want people to know what we are going through and I want to give hope to every Lebanese [person] even [if just] for a moment. Every time I was passing a stage [during Miss World] and they were saying the [name of the country], I was just thinking how much people would be happy and proud in Lebanon. I wanted to make a change and show Lebanese people how [we, as Lebanese, can accomplish a lot of things.]
What are your plans for the next few days?
I am currently in Mauritius with the Miss World organizers as I [am now] Miss World Asia. I am now with them on a tour and hopefully next week I will finally come back to Lebanon. I can't wait to see my parents and everyone in Lebanon.
What are your plans for the future? Do you still want to pursue a career in journalism?
My life is [constantly] changing, from Miss Lebanon to Miss World ... so I do not know what the future is hiding for me. I know that [what happened on Saturday will open the door] for a lot of opportunities. There will surely be beautiful things and this is [just] the beginning because we, as Lebanese, don't give up. Stay tuned as I still have very big dreams and I hope to realize them!