It was a back-to-back win for the state of Victoria with Daria Varlamova winning the Miss Universe Australia 2021 crown during the virtual finals held October 19.
The 26-year-old Russian-born, Western Australia-bred and Melbourne-based psychotherapy student will represent the nation at the 70th Miss Universe competition in Eilat, Israel in December. She suceeded 2020 titleholder Maria Thattil, who also represented Victoria.
Mia Brooks placed first runner-up, while Jasmine Stringer was second runner-up. Ally Draper and Tiana Meehan were third and fourth runners-up, respectively.
Varlamova was fourth runner-up in last year’s Miss Universe Australia competition. She is working as a student advisor at a university and is currently working towards her Master of Counselling degree.
As a mental health advocate, she was named one of Yahoo Finance’s Top 21 Health and Wellness Influencers for 2021. She is also writing a book to help people manage and take control of their anxiety.
Australia has two Miss Universe winners: Kerry Anne Wells (1972) and Jennifer Hawkins (2004). It currently ranks 6th in Missosology Big5 Ranking. Missosology.Org
