GORE BAY—Twenty-five-year-old Madison Kvaltin of Gore Bay is the 2023 winner of Miss Universe Canada.
“It is very exciting,” stated Ms. Kvaltin Sunday morning as she was packing to leave her hotel room in Vancouver after having been crowned Miss Universe Canada Saturday evening.
“Definitely not,” stated Ms. Kvaltin when asked if she felt she was going to win. “I had put a lot of hard work and effort into everything to give myself my best chance. The other top five finalists are all phenomenal and would each have been very deserving of this.”
Ms. Kvaltin was one of 58 contestants in the pageant. “We had to take part in a humanitarian project before the event. She has been fundraising for SOS Children’s Villages, which is the official charity of Miss Universe Canada. “It is a wonderful cause, and one that I am very happy to be supporting. I ended up being in the top three in scoring for the projects the contestants chose.”
From the original 58 contestants, this was narrowed down to the top 20, then 10 contestants made it to the semi-finals and five chosen for the finals. All contestants in the competition had to go through an interview, take part in the bathing suit and gown events as part of Miss Universe Canada, and were then asked a final question.
“I was asked what beautiful confidence (which was the theme of the competition) means to me,” Ms. Kvaltin say. “To me, it is allowing your inner beauty to shine and embracing your true self. It is a lot more than gowns and beautiful looks.”
Last year Ms. Kvaltin finished as first runner-up at Miss Universe Canada and competed in Japan at the Miss International, where she finished in the top eight, the highest ranking for a Canadian contestant since the early 1960s.
Ms. Kvaltin is originally from Sudbury, having moved to Gore Bay well over a year ago. Apart from working at Manitoulin Transport, where she is a management intern, Ms. Kvaltin is also an entrepreneur who owns two companies, Skill Athletics, that sells athletic wear, and Mad Media Marketing that focuses on body imaging and positive health.
On November 18, Ms. Kvaltin will represent Canada at Miss Universe 2023 in San Salvador, El Salvadore. She finished in the top 16 when she represented Canada at Miss Universe 2022 in New Orleans, Louisiana on January 14, 2023.
