Miss Philippines Catriona Elisa
Miss Puerto Rico Stephanie Del Valle reacts to being named Miss World as Miss Philippines Catriona Elisa (left) looks on. Reuters

On Sunday night millions watched Miss Philippines, Catriona Gray, deliver a powerful speech about the importance of uplifting, empowering and educating others. For many, with those few words, she had sealed her victory as the new Miss World.

But it was not meant to be. Minutes later, Miss Puerto Rico Stephanie Del Valle was named Miss World 2016 and Mireia Lalaguna of Spain's successor. The 19-year-old student come came out on top after winning over the judges during the talent round with her dulcet vocals.

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Puerto Rico celebrated their second Miss World to date but the decision was widely derided on Twitter. Furious members of the online community claimed that Miss Philippines, Catriona Gray, who came fifth and also won the Multimedia Award, should have taken home the coveted title.

During the final question-and-answer portion, Gray was asked what attributes one needed to possess wear the crown she had said: "I think, first of all, it takes bravery.

"To be a Miss World is to carry a burning torch, it is the action carried out by one to illuminate the lives of many and I would dedicate my whole self, my love for the arts, and my voice to try and uplift, empower, and educate people.

"And it would be my greatest honour and duty to hold this torch high enough so that all the world could feel and see its light."

Had she won, Gray would have been the second Miss Philippines to bring home the World title.

Who is Catriona Gray?

  • Gray, who was born in Cairns, has an Australian father and Filipino mother.
  • The 22-year-old TV Host, singer, model is well-travelled and has visited the USA, England, Australia, France, Thailand, Vietnam, and China. She documents her experiences on her blog cat-elle.com.
  • She is a fotrmer studnet of Boston's Berklee College of Music and has a Masters Certificate in Music Theory for her troubles.
  • She won Miss Philippines back in October 2015.
  • If her face ws familiar, it may because she was apperaed in Pantene's "Labels Against Women" campaign back in 2013., which explored the double standards that many women face at work.
  • The over-night star is believed to have been dating Superbod 2016 1st runner-up Clint Bondad since late 2015. The couple often post snaps of each other on social media. Three weeks ago he shared a picture of his seeing her off at the airport with the message: "There goes our queen ♡ #missworldphilippines2016 #CatrionaGray #Congratulations #Proud#Blessed #QueenCat #Philippines #iwearfoldedandhung #cadsmiles."
  • According to her Instragram bio, Gray is a "creative mind finding wonder in art, travel and music."