AFTER creating history by being the longest-serving Miss World, Jamaica’s Toni-Ann Singh passed the crown onto Poland’s Karolina Bielawska at the grand coronation on Thursday.

The pageant, which was held at Puerto Rico’s Coca-Cola Music Hall, saw United States’s Shree Saini, a 25-year-old business manager, as the first runner-up while Olivia Yace, a 24-year-old student from Côte d’Ivoire, was the second runner-up.

One of the event’s major highlights was Singh’s rendition of The Prayer as candles were lit inside the Hall to stand in solidarity with the people of Ukraine during their ongoing war with Russia.

The grand coronation was postponed last December after as many as 17 persons associated with the pageant, including contestants and technical and support staff, tested positive for COVID-19.

Jamaica has won the Miss World title on four occasions: Carole Joan Crawford in 1963, Cindy Breakespeare in 1976, Lisa Hanna in 1993 and Singh, who was crowned Miss World in 2019.

There was no contest in 2020 due to the ongoing pandemic.

As the longest-reigning Miss World title holder, Singh told the Jamaica Observer in a previous interview that her biggest takeaway from the experience has been her global influence.

“It’s different to know that the world needs us, that positivity is necessary, learning from each other is necessary. Then, something completely separates when you actually land in a certain country and you are able to see first-hand how different the culture is, also, what the needs are. You see the faces and touch and share and learn together. I mean, I’m completely changed by it. Even when I think about what I want to do in the future I say, ‘Now that I have a global perspective, I have to think that way. My mind has to change and I have to shift that perspective and think that with this platform, even in the future, how am I able to impact as many people as possible in a sustainable way using Miss World and what I’ve learnt? I’m wiser, older, and just ready now to take the world,” she said.