Among them was Miss Arizona K Johnson, a 41-year-old who finally made it to Miss USA after aging out under the previous system. There was also Miss Indiana Stephanie Sullivan, a 33-year-old mother of three boys, and Miss North Dakota Codi Miller, a 31-year-old returning to the national stage after competing at Miss Teen USA in 2009. Bailey Anne Kennedy, 31, was also the first transgender woman to win the Miss Maryland pageant.
But during the finals on Sunday night, not one of their names was called in the top 20.
In fact, not a single contestant who had placed in the competition was over 27.
When Miss USA announced it was eliminating the age limit, past contestants told Business Insider they thought it would be a challenging change for the competition.
“How do you compare someone who’s just entering adulthood to someone who has lived 20 years in their adulthood?” Miss USA 2020 Asya Branch told BI in February.
“Before we knew who Miss USA was, we knew what her job was and her role in society,” she added. “Now, I think the organization should redefine what that means and what they’re looking for. We don’t know what that looks like because this is a completely new world.”
Miss Montana 2020 Merissa Underwood told BI that she thought the rule change was a “total cash grab.”
“It’s capitalism under the guise of progression,” she added. “I really think it’s to bring in more contestants at the state level.”
Miss USA president and CEO Laylah Rose told BI at the time that lifting the age limit was about keeping the pageant relevant.
“We’re really proving that we’re inclusive,” Rose said. “We can start running for a marathon at 45, we can pick up a hobby at 50, we can go back to school at 65. So why would we limit a woman and tell her that she can or cannot do something?”
Miss USA 2003 Susie Castillo also celebrated the rule change. She told BI that she thought it would be a “game changer” for the pageant.
But for Miss USA 2024, at least, it was business as usual. Miss Michigan Alma Cooper, a 22-year-old US Army officer, was crowned the winner.
Representatives for Miss USA didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
