Meaning behind new Miss Universe 2022 crown by Lebanese jeweller Mouawad

At the 71st Miss Universe pageant in January, not only will a winner be announced, but she will get to wear a new crown, crafted by Lebanese jewellery brand Mouawad.

The crown, called Force for Good, was unveiled at a glitzy event in Bangkok on Monday by Fred Mouawad, the "co-guardian" of the Beirut-founded brand, as well as the Miss Universe Organisation's new Thai owner Anne Jakkaphong Jakrajutatip.

Former Miss Universe title holders Natalie Glebova (2005) from Canada and Thailand's Apasra Hongsakula (1965), also attended the event.

"The Force for Good crown is a work of extraordinary craftsmanship. It's a crown filled with symbolism. And we hope it will inspire not only the winners, but all of you to be a force for good," Mouawad said at the presentation, adding that the crown represents "a future forged by women who push the limits of what's possible".

Embedded with 110 carats of blue sapphires and 48 carats of white diamonds, the Force for Good crown features wave-like curls at the base, that emulates a serpent's head, "symbolising the challenges involved in swaying opponents," a description by Mouawad reads.

The colour gradiant of the predominantly white diamond base then changes to the blue of sapphires towards the top where a blue pear-shaped sapphire sits at the pinnacle, representing hope for a brighter future.

Founded in 1908 in Beirut and now with its headquarters in Geneva, Mouawad has been crafting one-of-a-kind pieces for royal families as well as the wealthy for four generations. It became the official jeweller for Miss Universe in 2019 when it crafted the crown for the winner of the title, South Africa's Zozibini Tunzi.

Called The Power of Unity, the crown, estimated to be between $4 million and $5 million, has been passed on to successive winners. Miss Universe 2021, India's Harnaaz Sandhu will be the last one to wear it.

"We thought, 'What can we do that's in line with our heritage, something majestic that would have a very wide exposure?'," Mouawad told The National in a previous interview, referring to how his company's relationship with the Miss Universe Organisation began.

"And we thought of Miss Universe, because we are, after all, jewellers to royalty. So why don't we use our know-how to also create a crown for the most beautiful women in the world?"

Estimated to be worth $5.5 million, the Force for Good crown comes amid a host of changes at the 70-year-old Miss Universe competition.

The organisation made history in August when it announced it was making one of the biggest changes to its selection process. Starting next year, the annual competition will accept married women and mothers. Previously, only single women, aged between 18 and 28, who have never been married or had children were allowed to apply.

In October, Jakrajutatip acquired the Miss Universe Organisation from IMG through her company JKN Global Group where she serves as chief executive.

JKN, which owns a portfolio of broadcast and media titles, said the deal will build on the pageant's legacy and further its commitment to inclusivity. There are also plans to expand the Miss Universe brand, including the launch of MU Lifestyle, a new licensing and merchandising arm.

Miss Universe has changed ownership a number of times since the first pageant was held in 1952. Former US president Donald Trump bought it in 1996 and sold it to global events and talent company IMG in 2015.

The global event is one of the longest-running and most-watched beauty competitions in the world; it is broadcast in 165 countries and seen by more than half a billion people annually.

Scroll through the gallery below for Miss Universe 2022 beauty queens who have been crowned so far, everywhere from Turkey to Italy

How to wear a kandura

Dos

Wear the right fabric for the right season and occasion
Always ask for the dress code if you don’t know
Wear a white kandura, white ghutra / shemagh (headwear) and black shoes for work
Wear 100 per cent cotton under the kandura as most fabrics are polyester

Don’ts

Wear hamdania for work, always wear a ghutra and agal
Buy a kandura only based on how it feels; ask questions about the fabric and understand what you are buying

The specs: 2019 Mini Cooper

Price, base: Dh141,740 (three-door) / Dh165,900 (five-door)
Engine: 1.5-litre four-cylinder (Cooper) / 2.0-litre four-cylinder (Cooper S)
Power: 136hp @ 4,500rpm (Cooper) / 192hp @ 5,000rpm (Cooper S)
Torque: 220Nm @ 1,480rpm (Cooper) / 280Nm @ 1,350rpm (Cooper S)
Transmission: Seven-speed automatic
Fuel consumption, combined: 4.8L to 5.4L / 100km

Expert advice

“Join in with a group like Cycle Safe Dubai or TrainYAS, where you’ll meet like-minded people and always have support on hand.”

Stewart Howison, co-founder of Cycle Safe Dubai and owner of Revolution Cycles

“When you sweat a lot, you lose a lot of salt and other electrolytes from your body. If your electrolytes drop enough, you will be at risk of cramping. To prevent salt deficiency, simply add an electrolyte mix to your water.”

Cornelia Gloor, head of RAK Hospital’s Rehabilitation and Physiotherapy Centre

“Don’t make the mistake of thinking you can ride as fast or as far during the summer as you do in cooler weather. The heat will make you expend more energy to maintain a speed that might normally be comfortable, so pace yourself when riding during the hotter parts of the day.”

Chandrashekar Nandi, physiotherapist at Burjeel Hospital in Dubai

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All ties are to be played the week commencing December 21.

What is the FNC?

The Federal National Council is one of five federal authorities established by the UAE constitution. It held its first session on December 2, 1972, a year to the day after Federation.
It has 40 members, eight of whom are women. The members represent the UAE population through each of the emirates. Abu Dhabi and Dubai have eight members each, Sharjah and Ras al Khaimah six, and Ajman, Fujairah and Umm Al Quwain have four.
They bring Emirati issues to the council for debate and put those concerns to ministers summoned for questioning.
The FNC’s main functions include passing, amending or rejecting federal draft laws, discussing international treaties and agreements, and offering recommendations on general subjects raised during sessions.
Federal draft laws must first pass through the FNC for recommendations when members can amend the laws to suit the needs of citizens. The draft laws are then forwarded to the Cabinet for consideration and approval.
Since 2006, half of the members have been elected by UAE citizens to serve four-year terms and the other half are appointed by the Ruler’s Courts of the seven emirates.
In the 2015 elections, 78 of the 252 candidates were women. Women also represented 48 per cent of all voters and 67 per cent of the voters were under the age of 40.

THE SPECS

Engine: 6.0-litre, twin-turbocharged W12

Transmission: eight-speed automatic

Power: 626bhp

Torque: 900Nm

Price: Dh1,050,000

On sale: now

WOMAN AND CHILD

Director: Saeed Roustaee

Starring: Parinaz Izadyar, Payman Maadi

Rating: 4/5

Three ways to boost your credit score

Marwan Lutfi says the core fundamentals that drive better payment behaviour and can improve your credit score are:

1. Make sure you make your payments on time;

2. Limit the number of products you borrow on: the more loans and credit cards you have, the more it will affect your credit score;

3. Don't max out all your debts: how much you maximise those credit facilities will have an impact. If you have five credit cards and utilise 90 per cent of that credit, it will negatively affect your score.

UPI facts

More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions

Boston%20Strangler

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2020 Oscars winners: in numbers

Parasite – 4
1917– 3
Ford v Ferrari – 2
Joker – 2
Once Upon a Time ... in Hollywood – 2
American Factory – 1
Bombshell – 1
Hair Love – 1
Jojo Rabbit – 1
Judy – 1
Little Women – 1
Learning to Skateboard in a Warzone (If You're a Girl) – 1
Marriage Story – 1
Rocketman – 1
The Neighbors' Window – 1
Toy Story 4 – 1

ABU DHABI ORDER OF PLAY

Starting at 10am:

Daria Kasatkina v Qiang Wang

Veronika Kudermetova v Annet Kontaveit (10)

Maria Sakkari (9) v Anastasia Potapova

Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova v Ons Jabeur (15)

Donna Vekic (16) v Bernarda Pera

Ekaterina Alexandrova v Zarina Diyas

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Riders must be 14-years-old or over
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Park the electric scooter in designated parking lots (if any)
Do not leave electric scooter in locations that obstruct traffic or pedestrians
Solo riders only, no passengers allowed
Do not drive outside designated lanes

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Key changes

Commission caps

For life insurance products with a savings component, Peter Hodgins of Clyde & Co said different caps apply to the saving and protection elements:

• For the saving component, a cap of 4.5 per cent of the annualised premium per year (which may not exceed 90 per cent of the annualised premium over the policy term).

• On the protection component, there is a cap of 10 per cent of the annualised premium per year (which may not exceed 160 per cent of the annualised premium over the policy term).

• Indemnity commission, the amount of commission that can be advanced to a product salesperson, can be 50 per cent of the annualised premium for the first year or 50 per cent of the total commissions on the policy calculated.

• The remaining commission after deduction of the indemnity commission is paid equally over the premium payment term.

• For pure protection products, which only offer a life insurance component, the maximum commission will be 10 per cent of the annualised premium multiplied by the length of the policy in years.

Disclosure

Customers must now be provided with a full illustration of the product they are buying to ensure they understand the potential returns on savings products as well as the effects of any charges. There is also a “free-look” period of 30 days, where insurers must provide a full refund if the buyer wishes to cancel the policy.

“The illustration should provide for at least two scenarios to illustrate the performance of the product,” said Mr Hodgins. “All illustrations are required to be signed by the customer.”

Another illustration must outline surrender charges to ensure they understand the costs of exiting a fixed-term product early.

Illustrations must also be kept updatedand insurers must provide information on the top five investment funds available annually, including at least five years' performance data.

“This may be segregated based on the risk appetite of the customer (in which case, the top five funds for each segment must be provided),” said Mr Hodgins.

Product providers must also disclose the ratio of protection benefit to savings benefits. If a protection benefit ratio is less than 10 per cent "the product must carry a warning stating that it has limited or no protection benefit" Mr Hodgins added.

Votes

Total votes: 1.8 million

Ashraf Ghani: 923,592 votes

Abdullah Abdullah: 720,841 votes

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DAY%20ONE%20RESULT

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Meaning behind new Miss Universe 2022 crown by Lebanese jeweller Mouawad

The piece, called Force for Good, is filled with symbolism and is dedicated to 'a future forged by women who push the limits of what's possible'

How to wear a kandura

The specs: 2019 Mini Cooper

Expert advice

While you're here

LEAGUE CUP QUARTER-FINAL DRAW

What is the FNC?

THE SPECS

WOMAN AND CHILD

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ABU DHABI ORDER OF PLAY

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Key changes

Votes

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DAY%20ONE%20RESULT