Miss Netherlands was won by a trans woman who created history.
Rikkie Valerie Kollé, 22, was chosen Miss Netherlands 2023 over the weekend, according to a contest announcement.
Ona Moody, the winner from the previous year, crowned Kollé. R’Bonney Gabriel, the reigning Miss Universe, awarded her with her sash.
“I DID IT!!!!!,” Kollé said on Instagram after her triumph, accompanied by a compilation of photographs from the event, including the moment she was crowned.
Yes, she is trans, and she wishes to share her story, but she is also Rikkie, and that’s what matters. She added in Dutch that she did this on her own strength and cherished every moment. And wherever one is in the world, she wants to be there for them and be the example that she missed when she was a little girl.
After Kollé’s triumph, the Miss Netherlands pageant celebrated with a special Instagram post.
Kollé is of Dutch and Indigenous Moluccan origin, as stated on her finalist website. She is from Breda and wishes to encourage women as well as members of the LBGTQ community.
She will be the second openly trans woman to participate in the Miss Universe contest later this year.
Thai businesswoman and transgender rights activist Anne Jakapong Jakrajutatip acquired the Miss Universe pageant in October 2022.
In a January interview, Jakrajutatip, who is trans, said that she sees pageants as a platform to raise the voices of women and provide them the stage to speak out for good. Jakrajutatip told that she wished to have a global women’s empowerment platform. That’s why she thought, ”Okay, I need a platform on the global stage. What is the best way for me to do so as a trans woman?”
El Salvador will host the Miss Universe 2023 pageant later this year.
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