MONTEGO BAY, St James — The Sunset Beach Resort, Spa and Waterpark in Montego Bay will host the grand coronation show for the ninth staging of the Miss Global International Pageant on September 28.

Pageant Director Lachu Ramchandani said he is expecting participants from 35 countries in what he believes will be a very competitive event.

“The contestants are all apprehensive knowing fully-well that the competition posed by each contestant is very steep. But no matter the outcome, at the end of the night, everybody is a winner for me,” said Ramchandani, at the official launch of the event at the Sunset Beach Resort, Spa and Waterpark, last week.

He stressed that he will be using this year’s event to set the stage for next year when the Commonwealth Group from Canada, headline sponsor for this year, will host the pageant in that country.

Apart from Jamaica, Ramchandani noted, there will be contestants from Australia, China, Ethiopia, Namibia and Singapore.

Ramchandani is the meantime is particularly pleased about the partnership he has forged with the Sunset Beach Resort, Spa and Waterpark, which has a special US$70-per-person-per-night rate based on double occupancy for locals attending the event.

The contestants are expected to start arriving in the island on September 23 and will depart a week later.

During their stay, they will visit a slew of the country’s tourist attractions, including Dunn’s River Falls, Kool Runnings Water Park and Dolphin Cove.

On Friday, September 27, the contestants will participate in a talent show at the Sunset Beach Resort, Spa and Waterpark, ahead of the following night’s grand coronation show.