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  • Meet R'Bonney Gabriel, the Miss USA 2022 winner who went on claim the Miss Universe crown in the midst of controversy

Meet R'Bonney Gabriel, the Miss USA 2022 winner who went on claim the Miss Universe crown in the midst of controversy

Anneta KonstantinidesJan 12, 2024, 22:41 IST

Meet R'Bonney Gabriel, the former Miss USA and current Miss Universe.Josh Brasted/Getty Images

  • R'Bonney Gabriel is the first American woman in 10 years to win Miss Universe.
  • She took home the crown after contestants said that Miss USA was rigged in her favor.

Only eight American women have won the Miss Universe crown. R'Bonney Gabriel is one of them, and she did it following months of controversy that erupted after she won Miss USA.

But Gabriel wasn't always a pageant girl. In fact, she had only begun competing just two years before she became an international name.

Here's how the Texas fashion designer made it to the Miss Universe stage.

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R'Bonney Gabriel is a model and fashion designer from Houston, Texas.

Gabriel designed many of the looks she wore on the pageant stage.R'Bonney Gabriel/Instagram

Gabriel began competing in pageants after a hairstylist convinced her.

Gabriel had only been competing in pageants for two years before she won Miss USA.Grant Foto
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Gabriel placed first runner-up in the Miss Texas 2021 pageant. She won the state pageant in 2022 and went on to compete in Miss USA on October 3 of that year.

Gabriel during the 2022 Miss USA pageant in Reno, Nevada.Finesse Levine

Gabriel won Miss USA 2022, becoming the first Filipino American to take home the crown.

Gabriel made history when she won Miss USA.Miss USA/Instagram
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The day after Gabriel won Miss USA, more than a dozen contestants claimed the competition had been rigged in her favor.

Miss USA R'Bonney Gabriel walks onstage during the Miss Universe competition on January 14, 2023, in New Orleans, Louisiana.Jason Kempin/Getty Images

Gabriel said the rigging allegations were a "huge distraction" as she tried to prepare to compete at Miss Universe.

Gabriel said she didn't feel like she had a voice during her Miss USA reign.Grant Foto
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Gabriel made a splash during the Miss Universe finals on January 14.

Gabriel at the Miss Universe competition in New Orleans on January 14.Timothy Clary/Getty Images

Gabriel was crowned Miss Universe — the first Miss USA to do so since Olivia Culpo won in 2012.

Miss Universe R'Bonney Gabriel points after being crowned on January 14, 2023.Jason Kempin / Staff / Getty Images
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Gabriel's Miss Universe role has taken her all over the world. She'll pass on the crown to the next winner on November 18.

Miss Universe 2022 R'Bonney Gabriel visits the Empire State Building on January 17, 2023, in New York City.Roy Rochlin/Getty Images for Empire State Realty Trust
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