Miss Philippines Catriona Gray, 24, was crowned the 2018 Miss Universe on Sunday at IMPACT Muang Thong Thani in Thailand.
The runner-up was Miss South Africa Tamaryn Green. The second runner-up was Miss Venezuela Isabella Rodríguez. Gray was officially crowned the Miss Universe title by last year's winner, Demi-Leigh Nel-Peters, at the end of Sunday's broadcast.
The top-5 also included Miss Vietnam Tran Tieu Vy and Miss Puerto Rico Kiara Ortega.
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Gray was chosen over a record-setting 94 contenders -- surpassing the previous record of 92 contestants set in 2017 -- which was narrowed down to three finalists on Sunday.
Gray was the social media favorite to win the 2018 Miss Universe pageant after wowing judges during the Miss Universe preliminaries with her slow-mo twirl, also known as the "lava walk," ABS-CBN News reported.
Gray began participating in pageants at the age of 5, when she won the Little Miss Philippines beauty pageant, ABS-CBN News reported. The 24-year old was born in Queensland, Australia to an Australian father and Filipino mother.
Gray moved to the Philippines at the age of 18 and used money earned from her modeling career to buy her plane ticket, according to the ABS-CBN.
This year's pageant followed the format of separating contestants by geographic region, which was implemented for the first time last year.
Celebrity Steve Harvey returned as the pageant's host in 2018, who has hosted during each of the past four years. Havey notoriously announced the wrong winner by mistake and issuing an apology during the 2015 Miss Universe live broadcast.
"The only thing I have to practice is at the very end, when I say who it is—that's the only thing I've got to get right. I don't care about where I've got to stand, I don't care about which side to walk down," Harvey, 61, told ABS-CBN News. "I only care about when I say, 'And the new Miss Universe is…' I need you all to pray for me."
Supermodel Ashley Graham conducted backstage interviews and provided commentary alongside TV personality Carson Kressley and runway coach Lu Sierra. R&B singer Ne-Yo provided a live performance during the pageant.
Bangkok has previously played host to the Miss Universe pageant twice -- 1992 and 2005.
"Over the pageant's 67-year history, Bangkok has hosted Miss Universe in 1992 and 2005, with representatives of Thailand also capturing the crown twice in 1965 and 1988," the organization's website reads. "This year, TPN 2018 Co. will host the 2018 Miss Universe and support in organizing the competition in Thailand."
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