Madison Marsh, 22, who is a second lieutenant in the US Air Force and a master’s degree in public policy program at Harvard Kennedy School, won the Miss America 2024 pageant in Orlando, Florida on Sunday night.
Marsh, representing the state of Colorado, is the first active-duty Air Force officer to ever receive the national title.
U.S. Air Force officer crowned as 2024 Miss America
— CTV News (@CTVNews) January 15, 2024
Ellie Brough from Texas was first runner-up.
Fifty-one contestants participated in the event, representing all 50 US states as well as the District of Columbia.
The competition followed three nights of preliminary competitions. At the start of the main event, the contenders were whittled down to 11 semi-finalists — 10 selected by the preliminary judges and one by public vote open to fans and followers of the pageant in the United States.
Congratulations to our very own #Airman2nd Lt. Madison Marsh, aka Miss Colorado — who was just crowned @MissAmerica 2024! Marsh is the first active duty servicemember to ever win the title.#AimHigh pic.twitter.com/3RuDu5CulW
— U.S. Air Force (@usairforce) January 15, 2024
The 11 women then competed in the four rounds of the competition – a fitness showcase (parade in crystal-encrusted sportswear); a “hot topics” discussion round that replaced the more traditional Q&A contest with a different set of talking points; talent show; and an evening gown presentation — before the five finalists are announced. Marsh and Brough were followed in the final standings by the second, third and fourth runners-up, respectively: Indiana’s Sydney Bridges, Kentucky’s Mallory Hudson and Rhode Island’s Caroline Parente.
Madison Marsh, 22, became the new Miss America 2024 this Sunday evening
Particularity, she is a second lieutenant in the American Air Force
— Le Parisien (@le_Parisien) January 15, 2024
In the somewhat different panel discussion, which brought up topics such as terrorism, technology, nutrition and climate change, Marsh responded to the topic of “drugs in America” by recalling his late mother’s battle with pancreatic cancer. In the talent round, she performed, focusing on getting her pilot’s license at the age of 16.
Pilot Madison Marsh becomes first active-duty Air Force officer to win Miss America title pic.twitter.com/me4HuDNLCf
— New York Post (@nypost) January 15, 2024
The five finalists then faced an additional question about their goals as Miss America. Marsh responded by highlighting her military credentials as an embodiment of her commitment to learning and leading “with passion.”
She succeeds Miss America 2023, Grace Stanke of Wisconsin.
The 2024 Miss America Teen Pageant, held Saturday night, crowned 16-year-old Hanley House of North Carolina.
Source: edition.cnn.com
2024-01-15 15:08:14
#America #officer #Air #Force #PHOTOS
