The 2025 Miss Universe from Côte d’Ivoire, Olivia Yacé, has resigned from her position as Miss Universe Africa and Oceania, a mere days after being crowned at the 2025 Miss Universe coronation in Bangkok, Thailand.
In a statement released today, Monday, November 24, 2025, in both English and French, Olivia Yacé announced her decision, stating that she want to “remain firmly anchored” in her ideals since they guide her towards greatness.
While representing Côte d’Ivoire at the Miss Universe 2025 pageant in Bangkok, I saw personally how far I could go when faced with challenges. As the fourth-place finisher, Yacé emphasized the importance of being loyal to her principles of respect, decency, excellence, and equal opportunity if she wanted to keep going in the right direction.
After her resignation, she made it official that she was cutting all links with the Miss Universe Organization.
“I am delighted to announce my resignation from the title of Miss Universe Africa and Oceania and from any affiliation with the Miss Universe Committee,” Yacé continued, her heart overflowing with gratitude and heartfelt admiration.
The recent Miss Universe pageant has been the center of a tornado of controversy, and her resignation comes in the middle of it all.
A pall of uncertainty has descended upon the pageant due to high-profile resignations, allegations of vote manipulation, and the dramatic walkout of the eventual winner, Miss Mexico.
Despite being in the lead, Miss Universe Palestine Nadeen Ayoub voiced her displeasure with what she saw as unfair voting processes in the “Most Beautiful People” category of the official Miss Universe app.
Omar Harfouch, who had been serving on the pageant’s jury, had previously announced his resignation, stating that he felt the voting procedure was not transparent.
After having a “disrespectful conversation” with Raul Rocha about the competition’s voting processes, the famous composer and concert pianist, who had joined the official panel of judges in July, voiced his concerns.
Not only that, but Harfouch had previously stated that he would not be performing the event’s original music.
Claude Makélélé, the manager of the French national football team, similarly announced that he would not be attending for “personal reasons.”
This was a tough call, because I have the utmost respect for Miss Universe,” he stressed. It was made clear that his withdrawal had nothing to do with the pageant or the organization, since the platform stands for empowerment, diversity, and excellence—values I have consistently championed throughout my career.
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