DOWN TO EARTH

Beauty Queen Suffers Dramatic Fall on Stage at Miss Earth Pageant

The Ukrainian contestant took it in stride.

A 24-year-old Ukrainian beauty queen slipped and fell onstage at the Miss Earth 2025 pageant in the Philippines. Mariia Zheliaskova was walking in a glittery lace dress and platform stiletto heels when she apparently tripped on her dress and fell. She quickly stood up, took a few more steps, and twirled, still smiling the whole time, as the audience cheered. Despite the fall, she managed to place second behind winner Natálie Puškinová of the Czech Republic. In a post on Instagram, Zheliaskova said it was the first time Ukraine had placed in the top eight of the Miss Earth contest, and that she was “beyond happy” that she’d been able to represent her home country “with pride and strength.” Her fall was the second tense moment this week in the beauty pageant world after several contestants walked off the stage of a different contest, the Miss Universe pageant, following a heated exchange between an executive and one of the contestants.