After almost two decades since the Miss Earth pageant’s inception in 2001, pageant powerhouse the USA got its first winner in the statuesque Lindsey Coffey of Pennsylvania.
Coffey bested 83 delegates from around the globe in the finals held virtually on Sunday and became the first American beauty to win the title that focuses on environmental issues. She succeeded Nellys Pimentel of Puerto Rico.
“I love surprises, it’s fun, but is this for real?” Coffey said in tears upon hearing she won.
“Honestly, I had no idea, I’m new to this, But they said that I’m deserving of the title. We made history today, this means so much to me,” Coffey said in shock and disbelief.
Named elemental queens were Venezuela’s Stephany Zreik, Miss Earth Air 2020; the Philippines’ Roxanne Allison Beyens, Miss Earth Water 2020; and Denmark’s Michala Rubinstein, Miss Earth Fire 2020.
The 28-year-old, Coffey, a political science and communication arts graduate, represented the Atlantic Ocean in Miss Earth USA 2020. A full-time model of Women360, Coffey ranks as one of Pennsylvania’s best collegiate high jumpers and aspires to obtain a Juris Doctor degree in the near future.
Asked the final Top 8 question, “This year brought us a lot of conspiracy theories and conflicting news or fake news, how would you reconcile fake news with the concept of truth?”
Coffey answered: “It’s very hard and difficult to decipher what is to believe and what not to believe. But we should try to find a reputable source that you can actually trust and try to figure out on your own what is the truth out there. It’s very crucial at this time to respect science, to respect the evidence in front of us,” said Lindsey who is also an ordained minister.
The others named in the Top 8 were Puerto Rico’s Crystal Badillo, Poland’s Sabina Poltawska, The Netherlands’ Tessa Le Conge and Myanmar’s Amara Shune Lei. The Top 20 semi-finalists were the delegates from Japan, Thailand, Singapore (Asia-Oceania), Costa Rica, Panama (the Americas), Poland, Portugal, Germany, Belarus (Europe), South Africa, Kenya, Nigeria and Cote d'Ivoire (Africa).
The Miss Earth 2020 coronation, hosted by James Deakin and telecast on TV5 and FOXlife, opened with a virtual tour of the world featuring the 84 Miss Earth 2020 delegates in their eco-angel and respective national costumes.
The guest performers were international violinist Iskandar Wijaja and Latin American singer and TV host Patricia Zabala. Joining Iskandar and Zabala as finals judges were Hassan Eltigani Malik, president of the United Nations Industrial Development Organization, Natalia Barulich, international DJ and model, Michael Ma, restaurateur, and Jewel Lobaton, Bb. Pilipinas-Universe 1998.