Miss Philippines, Megan Young, was crowned the winner of Saturday night's Miss World 2013 at the Bali Nusa Dua Convention Centre in Indonesia.
The 23-year-old said "I promise to be the best Miss World ever,”. She was crowned by last year's winner, Wenxia Yu. Young, who was born in the United States, beat out 126 other women competing for the crown in the 63rd annual pageant. The brunette beauty moved to the Philippines when she was 10 years old and has been living there since, working as an actress and television host.
Miss France, Marine Lorphelin, 20, placed second and 22-year-old Miss Ghana, Carranzar Naa Okailey Shooter, came in third. The 2013 Miss World pageant was primarily slated to be held in the Indonesian capital, Jakarta, but was moved to the resort island of Bali amid safety concerns. Police said there were no demonstrations or protests during the pageant, where security was heightened in fear of an attack.
Leading up the pageant, the Islamic Defenders' Front staged protests over the revealing (in their opinion) clothing worn during Miss World pageants. Islamic protesters criticized the pageant, calling it insulting to have women wearing bikinis and form-fitting evening outfit in Indonesia, the most populous mostly Muslim nation in the world. The Jakarta Post said groups were calling for the government to entirely shut down the competition, but instead, moved it to Bali three weeks ago.