Miss Texas USA has a Filipino-American winner for the first time. R'Bonney Gabriel was crowned the pageant queen at a ceremony in Houston.
"My heart is filled with joy," Gabriel, 28, wrote on Instagram after the event. "It's an honour to become Miss Texas USA 2022. I want to thank everyone involved in this special time! I have so much gratitude for your support."
The beauty queen is a Harris County resident, and was previously crowned Miss Friendswood. Friendswood is a city on the outskirts of Houston.
Gabriel graduated from the University of North Texas in Denton in 2018, and now runs independent fashion label R'Bonney Nola in Houston. She also runs sewing classes through the non-profit organisation Magpies & Peacocks in the city.
As Miss Texas USA, Gabriel will go on to represent her home state in the Miss USA pageant, the winner of which competes in the Miss Universe competition. The last Miss Texas USA to win Miss USA was Crystle Stewart, who went on to place in the top 10 at Miss Universe that year. Stewart has been the director of Miss USA and Miss Teen USA since 2020.
For her interview with Miss Texas USA, Gabriel wore a Filipiniana dress (or Maria Clara gown) of her own design.
"I had to wear a design I made," Gabriel wrote on Instagram, later sharing a video of her production process.
On stage over the weekend, Gabriel wore a custom gown created by Filipino designer Rian Fernandez. The ornate piece features trumpet sleeves and is embellished with glass beads, oversized rhinestones, Swarovski stones and sequins.
"Honoured to wear this @rianfernandez888 gown on the Miss Texas stage," she wrote. "It’s not every day I get to wear a piece made by a team of skilled crafters and I love every inch and detail of it and really appreciate all the work that went into this."
The coming Miss USA 2022 will be the 71st Miss USA pageant, of which the date and location have not yet been announced.
Miss Universe 2022 is expected to take place in December.
Miss Texas USA and Miss Texas
Miss Texas USA differs from Miss Texas. While the former's winners take a trajectory towards Miss Universe, the latter competition's winners go on to compete for the Miss America crown, and for various scholarships at Miss America.
In June, Filipino-American Averie Bishop, 25, became the first Asian-American to win Miss Texas in the 85-year history of the beauty pageant.
“It’s such an emotional feeling because when I was a kid, I never dreamed of becoming Miss Texas because I didn’t think that anyone looked like me as Miss Texas,” she said in an interview with NBC Dallas Fort-Worth.
Bishop is a Southern Methodist University graduate, who also studied law at the same school.
On her website, she describes herself as a “first-generation law student diversifying the digital space through education and career-based content”. She also lists herself as a marathon runner who has dined with two presidents and is a Dallas council member.
Current Miss Universe 2022 beauty queens who have been crowned — in pictures
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Miss Universe Turkey 2022 is Aleyana Sirin. Photo: Instagram / Aleyanasirinn -
Miss Universe Italy 2022 is Virginia Stablum. Photo: / Instagram / Virginia.Stablum -
Miss Universe Kyrgyzstan 2022 is Altynai Botoyarova. Photo: Instagram / botoyarova_altynai -
Evlin Khalifa, 24, is the second Miss Universe Bahrain. Photo: Miss Universe Bahrain -
Miss Universe Spain, Alicia Faubel, comes from Alicante and has lived in Dubai and the Philippines. Photo: Instagram / alicia.aliccia -
Divita Rai, 23, winner of India's Miss Diva Universe 2022. Photo: Miss Diva -
Sophiya Bhujel was crowned Oriflame Miss Universe Nepal 2022. Photo: Miss Universe Nepal -
Ndavi Nokeri, winner of Miss Universe South Africa 2022. Photo: Miss South Africa -
Anna Sueangam-iam was named Miss Universe Thailand 2022. Photo: Miss Universe -
Balsam Hussein when she was declared Miss Iraq 2022. Azhar Al-Rubaie for The National -
Yasmina Zaytoun after being crowned Miss Lebanon 2022 at Forum De Beirut. EPA -
Noky Simbani was crowned Miss Universe Great Britain 2022. Photo: Instagram / Miss Universe Great Britain -
Miss Ukraine 2022 is Viktoria Apanasenko, first runner-up from last year's contest. There was no pageant held this year owing to the war in the country. Photo: Instagram / Viktoria Apanasenko -
Nguyen Thi Ngoc Chau has been named Miss Universe Vietnam 2022. Photo: Facebook / Nguyen Thi Ngoc Chau -
Filipino-Italian beauty queen Celeste Cortesi was crowned Miss Universe Philippines 2022 in Manila. EPA-EFE -
Bhutan is marking its pageant debut this year and Tashi Choden is the country's first beauty queen. Photo: Tashi Choden -
Laksmi Suardana took the Puteri Indonesia 2022 crown, becoming the first contestant from Bali to enter Miss Universe. Photo: Laksmi Shari De Neefe Suardana -
Miss Universe Ghana 2022 Engracia Afua K Mofuman was one of the first women to be crowned in 2022, in order to compete in the 71st Miss Universe pageant. Photo: Engracia Mofuman -
Hanna Kim, from Seoul, will represent South Korea in the next Miss Universe pageant. Photo: Hanna Ming -
The first and last time the Seychelles competed in Miss Universe was 1995 and so, after that 27-year hiatus, Gabriella Gonthier, from Mahe, will be representing her home country. Photo: Gabriella Gonthier/ Miss University Africa -
Amelia Tu, from Vancouver, winner of Miss Universe Canada 2022. Photo: Miss Universe Canada -
Miss Universe Jamaica 2022, Toshami Calvin, 26, is the cousin of Miss World 2019 Toni-Ann Singh. Photo: Instagram / officialmissuniversejamaica
