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\nFollowing multiple controversies related to this year’s Miss Universe competition, contestant Melissa Sapini has openly called for an investigation into the pageantThe Miss Universe Organization crowned F\u00e1tima Bosch, who represented Mexico at the competition, as the 2025 titleholder in Bangkok on Nov. 21Her win followed weeks of controversies, including allegations of rigged results and the resignations of three members of the selection committee just days before the pageant; the Miss Universe Organization denied claims of misconduct<\/p>\n
Nearly two weeks after Miss Universe<\/a> crowned its 2025 winner, one contestant is calling further attention to the international pageant organization in response to the series of controversies that led up to the event.\n<\/p>\n In an open statement shared with PEOPLE, Melissa Sapini<\/a>\u00a0\u2014 who represented Haiti<\/a> at the competition in Bangkok on Nov. 21 \u2014 publicly calls for an independent, external investigation into allegations against the pageant.\n<\/p>\n Sapini’s announcement follows Miss Universe winner F\u00e1tima Bosch<\/a>‘s ABC News interview<\/a>, which aired on Tuesday, Dec. 2. During her discussion with\u00a0Nightline\u00a0anchor\u00a0JuJu Chang<\/a>, Bosch defended the pageant<\/a>; however, Sapini, 22, opens her latest statement by separating her call to action from Bosch, 27.\n<\/p>\n Melissa Sapini represents Haiti during the national costume presentation at Miss Universe 2025.<\/p>\n LILLIAN SUWANRUMPHA\/AFP via Getty<\/p>\n \u201cLet me be clear: this is not about F\u00e1tima. This is about protecting the women who cannot safely speak for themselves. I am speaking out because the organizers continue to provide excuses instead of answers,” Sapini begins. “Representing Haiti is the greatest honor of my life. But this moment is bigger than a crown. The world is watching. The narrative being pushed right now threatens the future and the integrity of Miss Universe.”\n<\/p>\n “Jokes about social media followers and Walmart crowns will not distract from the serious allegations we are raising,” she states, referring to a comment made by Bosch in response to claims her father rigged the results: “How are you going to buy a crown? Maybe in Walmart you can buy a crown, yeah. But not in Miss Universe for sure,” Bosch said on ABC.\n<\/p>\n Sapini’s statement then refers to the first controversy that landed Miss Universe a place in global headlines, when a livestream\u00a0showed a heated confrontation<\/a>\u00a0between pageant executive\u00a0Nawat Itsaragrisil<\/a>\u00a0and Bosch on Nov. 4.\n<\/p>\n Melissa Sapini at Miss USA 2024.<\/p>\n Alberto E. Rodriguez\/Getty\u00a0<\/p>\n “As for Nawat\u2019s behavior, I was in that room. We all heard what he said. Claiming it was a misunderstanding is insulting to every multilingual woman in the competition. To blame a language barrier is outrageous. His crocodile tears were dramatic, not honest,” Sapini says. “Now, he\u2019s attempting to silence F\u00e1tima with fabricated criminal charges. When will this man stop?”\n<\/p>\n Several outlets reported that Itsaragrisil called Bosch a “dumbhead” during their confrontation; a representative for Miss Grand International (MGI), the pageant organization that Itsaragrisil is also the president of, issued a comment to PEOPLE responding to the allegation.\n<\/p>\n “Miss Mexico wrongly claimed that Mr. Nawat called her ‘dumbhead,’ when he actually said ‘damage.’ Video evidence is available. She has never corrected the false accusation, which caused significant reputational harm to Mr. Nawat and triggered a series of escalating issues throughout the 74th Miss Universe event,” the MGI representative said.\n<\/p>\n Neither MGI, Itsaragrisil nor Bosch have replied to PEOPLE’s request for comment regarding the defamation complaint Itsaragrisil filed against Bosch, as shared on the official Miss Universe Thailand Facebook page<\/a>.\n<\/p>\n Sapini continues, “Respecting F\u00e1tima’s experience doesn’t mean ignoring our own. Anyone who has competed knows: what happens backstage is just as important as what happens on stage. Right now, only the stage story is being told.”\n<\/p>\n “Having Miss Universe defend Miss Universe is like asking a police department to investigate itself \u2014 it will never produce the full truth,” concludes Sapini’s statement. “That is why we need an independent investigation \u2014 unbiased, external, and transparent.”\n<\/p>\n Melissa Sapini at Miss USA 2024.<\/p>\n Gilbert Flores\/Variety via Getty<\/p>\n Prior to her participation in Miss Universe, Sapini reigned as Miss Massachusetts USA and competed at Miss USA 2024. Shortly after her return from Thailand, where she spent three weeks leading up to the competition, she spoke to PEOPLE and detailed her experience, which she described as completely “unheard of” in the world of pageantry.\n<\/p>\n “Every single day, there was something. Every single day, there was whispers between girls of, ‘Okay, is this weird to you? Am I going crazy?'” she recalled. “There were so many red flags from the beginning.”\n<\/p>\n Sapini told PEOPLE that the viral altercation between Bosch and Itsaragrisil marked the first time “things started to feel really off.”\n<\/p>\n Shortly after the livestream became worldwide news, Miss Universe owner Raul Rocha announced multiple sanctions against Itsaragrisil, including\u00a0his restriction from the pageant<\/a>. However, Sapini later claimed that the contestants regularly saw the pageant executive in the following weeks.\n<\/p>\n A representative for MGI told PEOPLE in an email statement that, because Itsaragrisil is the “CEO of MGI and the official Host President and primary investor of the 74th Miss Universe competition,” he “is obligated to oversee all host-related activities” and that, “as host, Mr. Nawat had to represent MGI at all venues.\u00a0Although Raul publicly claimed restrictions, such limitations were never realistic nor enforceable. Ultimately, MUO acknowledged the situation and resumed proper cooperation.”\n<\/p>\n Just three days before the actual pageant, musician\u00a0Omar Harfouch<\/a>\u00a0publicly dropped out of the pageant selection committee and posted multiple allegations of judging misconduct on social media.\n<\/p>\n The top five contestants at Miss Universe 2025 on Nov. 21, 2025.<\/p>\n LILLIAN SUWANRUMPHA\/AFP\/Getty<\/p>\n Harfouch claimed that the organization formed an “impromptu jury” to choose\u00a030 finalists before participants from 136 countries even took the stage<\/a>\u00a0for the preliminary round; the Miss Universe Organization denied his allegations in\u00a0a statement<\/a>\u00a0posted shortly after his resignation.\n<\/p>\n After Harfouch’s bombshell announcement on Nov. 18, soccer player Claude Mak\u00e9l\u00e9l\u00e9 announced\u00a0he was also withdrawing from his position<\/a>\u00a0as a judge, citing personal reasons. The president of the selection committee,\u00a0Princess\u00a0Camilla di Borbone delle Due Sicilie, also\u00a0resigned<\/a>.\n<\/p>\n Between the first incident involving Itsaragrisil until \u2014\u00a0and after \u2014\u00a0Bosch’s crowning, Sapini told PEOPLE that she was consistently unnerved by the conditions of the competition.\n<\/p>\n “Another moment where I was scared is when contestants started to get sick,” the New Englander told PEOPLE exclusively in her first interview following the pageant. “So many girls were hospitalized. Girls were dropping like flies, left and right.”\n<\/p>\n She remembered how pageant group chats were filled with messages from contestants claiming that they were suffering from debilitating flu symptoms and food poisoning. She said pageant leadership did respond to some sick contestants’ requests for help, but Sapini claimed the aid was generally limited to chaperones advising women to either visit on-site medical personnel or check into the hospital.\n<\/p>\n The staff allegedly did not, however, take action to address some of the more preventable illnesses, like food poisoning.\n<\/p>\n “They were just giving us these box lunches that were making people sick,” claimed Sapini, who is one of several contestant who have since spoken out against the pageant. “They were not talking about, ‘Okay, everyone’s getting sick. We’re going to do\u00a0this\u00a0to change the food, or what have you. That scared me.'”\n<\/p>\n A representative for MGI told PEOPLE that, “as the Host, MGI follows strict standards for food management based on our extensive experience in pageant operations.”\n<\/p>\n The top 12 contestants at Miss Universe 2025 on Nov. 21, 2025.<\/p>\n Mohan Raj\/Getty<\/p>\n “Contestants are required to submit their health conditions and dietary restrictions in advance,” the representative said. “A number of contestants did not provide this information, making it impossible for us to prepare special meals in time.”<\/p>\n Continuing on, the representative clarified, “We repeatedly requested this information from MUO, but MUO could not provide it. In such cases, immediate on-site solutions were applied.”\n<\/p>\n The Miss Universe Organization has not replied to PEOPLE’s request for comment regarding MGI’s claim.\n<\/p>\n Addressing medical care available to contestants throughout the duration of the pageant, the MGI representative also said, “Throughout the event, chaperones consistently assisted all contestants, and a full medical team was available at all times.”\n<\/p>\n Upon hearing about Harfouch’s allegations and the following resignations, Sapini said she and other contestants had discussions about leaving Thailand altogether, even though the pageant was days away. She started to really question her reasons for competing upon seeing the news that a third judge had dropped out.\n<\/p>\n