Miss World 2016 Review: Kazakhstan - Nigeria

The 66th Miss World will be crowned on December 18 at the MGM Grand Hotel in Maryland, USA. 117 young women will compete for the title of Miss World 2016. The winner will be crowned by outgoing Miss World. Mireia Lalaguna from Spain. Who will be Miss World? Here are our thoughts about this year's group and their chances.

****** Might be the next Miss World 
***** Might make it to the top 5 or win a continental title 
**** Could reach the top 10 
*** Could reach the top 20 
** Solid competitor but will probably miss the cut 
* Likely to miss the first cut 

Kazakhstan – Aliya Mergembayera ***

Isn’t she just gorgeous. In my opinion, she has one of the most gorgeous face of the competition. I hope she does not go unnoticed. At one point, it seemed like she might be able to take it all. But Miss World is so unpredictable that I won’t be surprised to see her miss the cut altogether.

Kenya – Evelyn Njami *****

Evelyn is my African queen. I love her. She’s gorgeous, tall, statuesque and she seems to have a lovely personality. I was starting to doubt her chances, but after the her top 5 finish in the Top Model event and top 5 in BWAP, she must be considered the front-runner from Africa.

Korea – Hyun Wang ***

The Asian group is so strong and Hyun is one of the Asian beauties who could definitely place in the top 20. She spent a lot of time in the States, so I wonder if that will work in her favor. She is definitely on my radar.

Kyrgyzstan – Perizat Rasulbekkyzy *

Perizat is cute, but that’s not always good enough in a major beauty pageant like Miss World. Especially when you are competing in a group that’s really strong.

Latvia – Linda Kinca ***

Latvia is getting more attention at Miss World than they have in a long time. Linda is a natural beauty and despite not being the most gorgeous of the bunch, she’s well-rounded. Having made the top 10 in talent and top 24 in sports, she’s certainly one to watch.

Lebanon – Sandy Tabet **

Lebanon was the fan favorite last year and everyone was hoping that their delegate would take home the crown. Sandy had a tough act to follow, but she held her own. At times, I thought she was quite inconsistent, but she definitely is a pretty girl. I doubt that Lebanon will achieve the same result they did last year.

Lesotho – Rethabile Tsosane **

The small mountain kingdom of Lesotho is one of the tiniest nations competing at Miss World and they rarely get much attention. This year, I must say that Rethabile is a nice surprise and much stronger than the initial winner who resigned. I think she did her best.

Malaysia – Tatiana Kumar **

Tatiana is a beautiful girl, but I feel she is still too young and inexperienced. Maybe in a year or two she would have been more prepared and ready to fight for a top place in the competition. Somehow, I wish her runner-up had rather competed this year and that they had saved this lovely young woman for another year.

Malta – Anthea Zammit ***

This is a strong year for Malta too. She has done well in talent and sports. The organization has definitely noticed her and wouldn’t it be nice to see Malta do well for a change. It might not happen again soon.

Mauritius – Veronique Allas **

I think Veronique is really sweet and pretty and a good representative for the tiny island nation of Mauritius. She’s up against stiff competition though, but it was nice to see Mauritius sending a credible contestant.

Mexico – Ana Girault ****

You will love her or dislike her, but you are going to talk about her. Ana has been making waves at Miss World – not only because of her gorgeous looks, but because of her other weapon… her extremely outgoing personality. Some might feel it was too much for the Miss World Pageant, but in a year like this year, we do feel that it brought life to a very boring party.

Moldova – Daniela Marin **

Another pretty girl that got lost in this group of beauties. It’s too bad.

Mongolia – Bayartsetseg Altangerel *****

Well, it’s no secret that Bayartsetseg is a seasoned competitor, having competed in Miss International and Miss Earth before this. She has been able to make an impact again and has huge support and it seems that she is truly well-liked by the other contestants. As the winner of the Miss World Talent fast-track, she is guaranteed a spot in the top 10 and isn’t it nice to see talent not going to a singer.

Montenegro – Katarina Kekovic **

It’s the same story again. Pretty girl got lost in the crowd.

Myanmar – Myat Thiri Lwin **

Myat is super cute, but the Asian girls have come super prepared and ready to fight. Her only hope would be the public voted.

Nepal – Asmi Shrestha **

I would not say that she is one of the standouts of the group, but as usual Nepal has gained attention where it matters – Beauty With A Purpose. Asmi’s project has been selected as one of the top 5 projects. The winner will be announced during the finals.

Netherlands – Rachelle Reijnders **

It’s a brand new franchise for the Netherlands after the Miss World Organization decided to give their brand to another organization in that country. They staged a last minute pageant and Rachelle was the winner. She did well despite having very little time to prepare. Kudos to her.

New Zealand – Karla de Beer ***

Karla is very pretty and very likeable. I expect her to do well in her interview. She gave it her all and competed strongly, but this year is super unpredictable. It could go either way for her at this point.

Nicaragua – Maria Laura Ramirez *

When you have to wonder if they competed this year, it’s not a good sign. She seems like a pretty girl, but I just didn’t take any notice of her during the competition.

Nigeria – Debbie Collins *

Debbie competed at Miss Universe last year and wasn’t among the frontrunners there. This year, she didn’t make as much of a splash as some of her fellow competitors from the African region.