PH makes 1st cut: Tanzania wins Miss Grand International 2026

October 11, 2026 | 10:31am The Philippines' Emma Mary Tiglao crowns Jihan Dimack of Tanzania who bested 79 other international delegates to win Miss Grand International 2026 at the coronation night held in MGI Bangkok, Thailand on October 10, 2026. Screenshot via Miss Grand International YouTube channel MANILA, Philippines – The Philippines' aspired “three-peat” did not transpire because a new player won the crown. Jihan Dimack of Tanzania bested 79 other international delegates to win Miss Grand International 2026 at the close of glitzy rites in Bangkok, Thailand on Saturday, October 10. Dimack was crowned by outgoing queen Emma Mary Tiglao of the Philippines, who succeeded fellow Filipina beauty queen Christine Juliane "CJ" Opiaza. Jihan’s court is composed of Shyare Andrade (Ecuador), Beau Megan Goos (Netherlands), Xumena Carillo (Guatemala), and Emoura Pham (Vietnam), runners-up in descending order. The six other ladies who made it to the semifinal round Top 11 were all named fifth runners-up. They were Marlene Kany Kovasti (Cote D’Ivoire, Best in Swimsuit), Patthama Jittsawat (Thailand), Lady Di Mosquera (Venezuela), Pety Juarez (Mexico), Alyanni Gomez (Cuba), and Vicily Carbonell (Puerto Rico). Reina Filipinas Angelica Lopez bowed out early of the competition when she failed to place in the Top 11. She, however, won as Best in National Costume with Zara Younos (Pakistan) and Yulanda Lu Xienbing (Hong Kong). Angelica was one of 25 aspirants who made the first cut. The other ladies who placed in the quarterfinals were: Emily Baesen (Belgium) Viktoria Ozuwakotanmi (USA( Alba Marie Ruiz (Spain) Zuliet Seminario (Peru) Michaela Viveros (Paraguay) Vyan Trisni (Malaysia) Uzogheli Ifeoma (Nigeria) Emily Carmelina Aleman (Honduras) Catalina Nurillo (Costa Rica) Liu Mengmenf (China) Ignacia Michelson (Chile) Francie Milian (Uruguay) Hana Dedkova (Czech Republic) The national directors from the Philippines and Japan were named as Grand Silver awardees, while Tanzania was named Grand Gold awardee. Hosted by Matthew Deane and co-hosted by MGI queens Isabella Menin (2022), Luciana Fuster (2023), CJ Opiaza (2024), Vanessa Pulgarin (All-Star 2025), Huong Kiang Giang (All Star 2025 2nd runner up), the Miss Grand International 2026 coronation night unfolded at the MGI Hall in Bangkok and was streamed to a global audience through the GrandTV channel on YouTube. RELATED: PH's Mangkukulam thrills Miss Grand Int'l 2026 national costume show