Floriane Bascou will wear the colors of France, this Saturday, January 14 at the Miss Universe contest in New Orleans in the United States.
It is Floriane Bascou, and not Diane Leyre, who will represent France in the Miss Universe contest on the night of Saturday to Sunday, in New Orleans. The 21-year-old, Miss Martinique 2021, is the first runner-up to Miss France 2022.
Diane Leyre, who has just finished her “term” of Miss France, and left her crown to Indira Ampiot last December, had expressed her disappointment in October at not being able to compete, and invoked a “lack of time”.
“Unfortunately, I will not be able to participate in the Miss Universe contest due to lack of time and preparation a few weeks before my presentation of the Miss France title, next December,” she said in a press release. “I don’t like to do things by halves when it comes to representing France.”
“I really wanted to do it”
In the columns of Telestar, Diane Leyre had not hidden, however, a certain bitterness. “I really wanted to do it,” she assured, adding that she had “the feeling of not going to the end of the experience”.
“We had the date (of Miss Universe) a short time ago, she had still explained to the microphone of Virgin Radio. And it is true that in view of my activities Miss France and the radio, I have very little time to prepare and go halfway there. For me, it was not possible.”
The former Miss Île-de-France indeed co-hosts a radio program on Europe 2 (ex-Virgin Radio), Le Morning sans filtre, with Guillaume Genton and Fabien Delettres.
Catwalk and English lessons
For the same reasons, Diane Leyre will also not participate in the Miss World competition, where Clémence Botino, Miss France 2020, will represent France, after having competed at Miss Universe in December 2021.
“In general, Miss France and her first runner-up take part in Miss World or Miss Universe. As soon as I returned to Martinique, I prepared for it”, confided Floriane Bascou, this Friday to Gala.
She thus explained that she had chained the “catwalk lessons” and worked on English to answer questions from the American press.
“We missed the World Cup but I’m going to bring back the crown of Miss Universe”, she launched to Telestar.
Reviewed by Sylvie Tellier
Before her, other first runners-up have represented France in the Miss Universe competition, even if this remains rare. Eva Colas, first runner-up to Maeva Coucke, Miss France 2018 thus competed, as did Hinarani de Longeaux, first runner-up to Miss France 2013, Marine Lorphelin.
The Miss Universe contest, commented by Sylvie Tellier, will be broadcast live on Paris Première at 2 a.m., on the night of Saturday to Sunday.
If Floriane Bascou climbed to the top step of the podium, she would be the third Frenchwoman in history to become Miss Universe, after Christiane Martel in 1953, and more recently, Iris Mittenaere in 2016. She will face 86 other candidates.
