Miss Universe Hopefuls Sport Stunning National Costumes in This Year's Pageant

Miss Universe 2017 beauty pageant takes place at the Mall of Asia Arena in suburban Pasay city south of Manila, Philippines. A total of 86 contestants are vying for the title in the grand coronation on January 30 to succeed Pia Wurtzbach of the Philippines.

In this year's national costumes show, Miss Universe contestants presented some bizarre creations, with the usual feathers, sequins and luxurious fabrics paling in comparison with Miss Germany's castle hat, Miss Myanmar's mobile stage for a costume and Miss Sweden's cut-out of a horse.

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© REUTERS / Erik De Castro

Carolyn Carter, Miss US Virgin Islands, chose a flurry of colors, feathers and fabrics to serve as her background.

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© AP Photo / Bullit Marquez

Yuliana Korolkova, Miss Russia, went for an angelic look combined with a traditional Russian head-dress fit for a tsarevna.

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© REUTERS / Erik De Castro

Ida Ovmar, Miss Sweden, sported a Pippi Longstocking look complete with a cardboard horse.

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© AFP 2023 / Ted Aljibe

Jenny Kim, Miss Republic of Korea, took a more down-to-earth approach and presented a variation of a traditional Korean costume.

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© AFP 2023 / Ted Aljibe

Connie Jimenez, Miss Ecuador, dressed up in an elaborate hummingbird costume. There are more than 130 species of hummingbird in Ecuador.

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© AFP 2023 / Ted Aljibe

Jaime-Lee Faulkner, Miss Great Britain, wielded victoriously a golden trident. Very subtle.

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© AFP 2023 / Ted Aljibe

Deshauna Barber, Miss US, went as Freedom Girl.

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Iris Mittenaere, Miss France, brought with her the chic of Moulin Rouge.

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For Htet Htet Htun, Miss Myanmar, one stage is not enough, so she attached a mobile set-up to her back and acted as a marionette in a traditional Burmese show.

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© REUTERS / Erik De Castro

Brenda Jimenez, Miss Puerto Rico, wore a cloak with the country's coat of arms sequined on it.

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© REUTERS / Erik De Castro

Li Zhen Ying, Miss China, jazzed up her costume up with several panda motifs.

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© REUTERS / Erik De Castro

Johanna Acs, Miss Germany, found inspiration in the fairy tales of Brothers Grimm. And nothing says "fairy tale" more than a Disney princess' dress and a castle hat.

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© AFP 2023 / Ted Aljibe

Roshmita Harimurthy, Miss India, exploited the richness of Indian colors and intricate patterns in full.

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© REUTERS / Erik De Castro

Soyini Fraser, Miss Guyana, presented a costume inspired by African themes.

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© AFP 2023 / Ted Aljibe

Siera Bearchell, Miss Canada, combined the two things associated with her country - the national tree and winter - to create a hybrid of a snowflake and a maple leaf.

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© AFP 2023 / Ted Aljibe

Rebecca Rath, Miss Beliz, followed Miss Ecuador's train of thought and presented a rainbow parrot-like garment.

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© REUTERS / Erik De Castro

Keity Drennan, Miss Panama, showed off a carefully assembled installation featuring huge feathers, LED-lights, and actual puppets the size of a toddler mounted to each wing.

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© REUTERS / Erik De Castro

Le Hang, Miss Vietnam, sported all shades of yellow.

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© AFP 2023 / Ted Aljibe

Antonella Moscatelli, Miss Bolivia, carried out a gigantic feather fan, patriotically painted in the colors of the national flag.

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© REUTERS / Erik De Castro

Marina Jacoby, Miss Nicaragua, reminded everyone that diamonds are a girl's best friend. And if you don't have diamonds, a ton of crystals will do the trick.