Cindy Donguyen is the queen of the First Annual Ms. Vietnam Free-World Universe pageant, held Feb. 23 in Mississippi.
The pageant was Donguyen’s first-ever competition, and nobody was more surprised at her victory than Donguyen herself.
“I didn’t know I won at first,” she said. “I was just crying so hard when I won?all the girls were so pretty.”
Donguyen, a 21-year-old family and consumer studies major at the U, had to go through a phone interview before being selected as one of 50 finalists to attend the pageant.
“I was just happy to make it into the top 10 [finalists],” she said.
Contestants had to model a traditional form of Vietnamese dress known as Ao Dai, as well as their choice of either a swimsuit or evening wear.
Top Ao Dai designers donated their dresses to the 10 finalists to model. Contestants in the pageant must be at least 50 percent Vietnamese and non-communists.
For Donguyen, the victory “really boosted my self esteem.”