Miss Universe 2015 Winners, Highlights & Recap: Who Won the Crown?

On Sunday night, Dec. 20, 2015, the wrong contestant was crowned Miss Universe.

The host of the prestigious beauty pageant, Steve Harvey, made the huge mistake of declaring Miss Colombia the ultimate winner when she was actually first runner-up, writes CNN. The rightful winner was Miss Philippines, Pia Alonzo Wurtzbach.

Initially, Harvey announced that Miss Colombia, Ariadna Gutierrez, was the winner. She was immediately crowned and had a huge smile as she blew kisses to viewers and waved the Colombian flag.

“Okay folks… I have to apologize. Let me just take control of this. This is exactly what’s on the card. I will take responsibility for this. It was my mistake. It was on the card,” Harvey told the Las Vegas crowd.

It was a very awkward moment when Wurtzbach had to walk to the front of the stage and be crowned after the accessory was removed from the head of Miss Colombia. The second runner-up went to Miss United States, Olivia Jordan.

Subsequently, Harvey tweeted another apology. He posted that he did not wish to take away from the amazing night, pageant and contestants and commended all the people at the event. He added that he apologizes wholeheartedly to Miss Colombia and Miss Philippines and that he felt terrible for his mistake.

While others immediately dismissed the error, others were not so forgiving.

The Guardian reported that later, Wurtzbach wished Gutierrez well. She said that she was very sorry, and did not take the crown from Miss Colombia. The Miss Universe account on Facebook also stated that human error can happen during a live telecast, which can explain the awkward situation. The organization forwarded its sincerest apologies to Miss Philippines, Miss Colombia, their fans and families and congratulated the new winner.

It is not actually the first time that the wrong person was announced the winner of a huge beauty pageant. In 2010, Sarah Murdoch read the wrong name in the final episode of Australia’s “Next Top Model.”

Miss Universe involves 80 women aged 19 to 27 representing their respective countries. It was the first time that home viewers were part of the outcome of the contest by being allowed to vote, aside from a panel consisting of four celebrity judges.

Miss Colombia and Miss Philippines have yet to comment on Harvey’s recent statements. More updates and details on the 2015 Miss Universe are expected soon.