Korea wins Miss Earth 2022, Philippines in Top 20

MANILA, Philippines — Mina Sue Choi of Korea was crowned Miss Earth 2022 after besting 85 other Earth warriors at the culmination of pageant rites in The Dome of Okada Manila. She was crowned by outgoing queen Destiny Wagner of Belize.

Her elemental court included:

• Miss Earth Air 2022 Sheridan Mortlock of Australia,
• Miss Earth Water 2022 Nadeen Ayoub of Palestine,
• and Miss Earth Fire 2022 Andrea Aguilera of Colombia.
• The other delegates who made it to the final round [Top 8] were the delegates from Zimbabwe, Netherlands, Puerto Rico, and Belgium. 

The show began with all the delegates in a production number, choreographed by dance group G-Force, with Miss Earth 2021 Destiny Wagner. This was followed by the announcement of the Top 20.

After three weeks of the pageant's events and activities, including online challenges in environmental awareness, swimwear, and Q&A (question and answer), the judges chose who made the cut to the semifinal round.

Donning identically-cut swimwear from Ricky Abad, the other lucky delegates who made it to the Top 12 were:

• Brazil,
• Cuba,
• Nigeria, and
• Portugal
• while the candidates from Ethiopia, Namibia, Ireland, Slovenia, Vietnam, Norway, Czech Republic, and Miss Philippines Earth 2022 Jenny Ramp made it to the semifinal round. Jenny was also adjudged the Best in Fauna Outfit from Asia and Oceania earlier in the evening.

The other special award recipients were:

• Nigeria (Africa), USA (the Americas), and Belarus (Europe) for Best Fauna Outfit,
• as well as Nigeria (Africa), Mexico (the Americas), Indonesia (Asia/Oceania), and Belarus (Europe) for the Best in National Costume.

The winners of the Best Eco videos were:

• Namibia (Africa),
• Colombia (the Americas),
• Nepal (Asia/Oceania)
• and Ireland (Europe).

This year's theme for the competition was "ME Luvs Fauna" and the candidates made "planet tours" to the provinces of Cebu (Tuburan), Palawan, Zamboanga, Negros Oriental (Dumaguete), and Panay (Romblon) for its pre-pageant competitions, as well as events and activities in municipalities of Tarlac, Pampanga, and Albany.

This year's panel of judges included:

• Dr. Teresa Mundita Lim,
• Aaron Kemmer,
• Daphne Oseña Paez,
• Abhishek Gupta,
• Thuy Bui,
• Roel Refran,
• and Lorraine Schuck.

Hosted by James Deakin - with anchors Miss Earth 2015 Angelia Ong, Miss Earth 2017 Karen Ibasco, and Miss Earth 2019 Nellys Pimentel - the four-hour extravaganza was beamed live from The Dome of Okada Manila through Carousel Production's YouTube channel.

Next year, the 23rd Miss Earth coronation night will unfold in Vietnam. Stay tuned!

RELATED: Celeste Cortesi confident new Miss Universe owner won't be biased to Thailand