Datin Elaine Daly On The First-Ever Virtual Miss Universe Malaysia

Photo: Miss Universe Malaysia Organisation

By Tania Jayatilaka
July 20, 2020

This September, the new Miss Universe Malaysia will be crowned in a ceremony that will be streamed live on its website

In the spirit of ‘the show must go on’, the Miss Universe Malaysia Organisation (MUMO) recently announced that the crowning of Miss Universe Malaysia 2020 will happen this year as planned—minus the crowd.

Earlier this month, MUMO national director Datin Elaine Daly announced that the event would take place in the form on an e-Gala, streamed live on the Miss Universe Malaysia Organisation's newly-revamped website.

Photo: Courtesy of Elaine Daly

“Because of Covid-19 SOPs and social distancing, this year's event is, of course, going to be very different from previous ones. Instead of a physical gala that typically hosts between 800 to 1,000 people, we’ve had to scale it down to an online format,” says Daly. But the good news is that streaming the event live means it can reach out to a larger audience.

"With this new format, the audience is worldwide, not limited to 800 or 1,000. I think being able to have the opportunity for a bigger audience is very exciting.”

Law students, marketing executives and more are among this year's top 18 contestants vying for the crown (Photos: Miss Universe Malaysia Organisation)

The e-Gala, happening on Sept 5, 2020 at 5pm, will see only the presence of the finalists, the panel of judges and host Will Quah. This year’s judging panel includes actor and producer Dato’ Hans Isaac, Datin Selwinder Kaur of Glojas by Smart International Aesthetic, Dr Nicholas Lim of La Jung Aesthetic Clinic, Miss Universe Malaysia 2012 Deborah Henry, Esthetics International Group director Michelle Lam, designer Carven Ong, celebrity hairstylist Shawn Loong of Shawn Cutler, and Elizabeth Lee-Yong of Bowerhaus.

The format will also give the audience a chance to influence the outcome of the evening as they vote for their favourite contestants for the top prize, as well as subsidiary titles like Miss HABIB, Miss Congeniality and Best In Evening Gown.

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The Miss Universe Malaysia 2019 Gala. (Photo: Miss Universe Malaysia Organisation)

“It will still be very glamorous. You’ve got 18 very beautiful contestants all dolled up, live performances and more. The show will go on as usual, just without a physical audience present,” says Daly, adding that MUMO hopes to bring back the physical gala next year.

Early bird tickets to watch the e-Gala will be available at www.missuniverse.com.my from Aug 10, with 20 per cent of the proceeds from ticket sales going to charity.