Miss Universe Pia Alonzo urges fans to stop fighting after announcement debacle

The Wrap
December 26, 2015 at 6:28PM
Former Miss Universe Paulina Vega, center, reacts before taking away the flowers, crown and sash from Miss Colombia Ariadna Gutierrez, left, before giving it to Miss Philippines Pia Alonzo Wurtzbach at the Miss Universe pageant Sunday, Dec. 20, 2015, in Las Vegas.
Former Miss Universe Paulina Vega, center, reacts before taking away the flowers, crown and sash from Miss Colombia Ariadna Gutierrez, left, before giving it to Miss Philippines Pia Alonzo Wurtzbach at the Miss Universe pageant Sunday, Dec. 20, 2015, in Las Vegas. (Associated Press/The Minnesota Star Tribune)

Newly crowned Miss Universe Pia Alonzo was in the Christmas spirit on Christmas, standing in front of the famous Rockefeller Plaza Christmas tree before writing an Instagram post that spread both cheer and a little jeer.

In her post, Alonzo, who was initially named runner-up before Steve Harvey reversed course and correctly named her Miss Universe, wrote about how grateful she was to win the prestigious honor.

But she also had a message for battling fans who've been going at it for days over the debacle that originally named the Colombian beauty Ariadna Gutierrez Miss Universe.

"And to all the fans who are still fighting about this…Please let's all stop now," she wrote on Instagram. "The Miss Universe Organization is about uniting empowered women from all over the world."

Alonzo urged fan to stop engaging in hateful exchanges over who really won.

"Arguing and sending hateful messages to each other defeats the whole purpose. You believe in the message of Miss Universe and so do I."

She also had words of praise for Miss Colombia, calling her an "amazing woman" with great things ahead of her:

To Ariadna, you are an amazing woman and we are now bonded together forever by a unique experience. In the last 3 weeks we were together, I saw how strong and beautiful you are inside and out. You represented your country with honor and I know how proud everyone must be of you. Fate has a plan for you, and I'm excited to see what's ahead.

about the writer

about the writer

The Wrap

More from No Section

See More
FILE -- A rent deposit slot at an apartment complex in Tucker, Ga., on July 21, 2020. As an eviction crisis has seemed increasingly likely this summer, everyone in the housing market has made the same plea to Washington: Send money — lots of it — that would keep renters in their homes and landlords afloat. (Melissa Golden/The New York Times) ORG XMIT: XNYT58
Melissa Golden/The New York Times

It’s too soon to tell how much the immigration crackdown is to blame.