After 35 years, the Miss Netherlands beauty pageant is coming to an end as the contest is "no longer of this time," the organiser announced. The Miss Belgium competition will, however, continue.
The Dutch version of the beauty pageant has "left a unique legacy" in recent years, announced organiser Monica Van Ee, but it is time for a new direction. One key reason is that candidates receive too much criticism from the public, she said.
"The candidates would accused of being too white, too black – or that they shouldn't win regardless of their looks because of their convictions. This generates negative energy every year," Van Ee said.
In 2023, Miss Netherlands Rikkie Kollé even received death threats after she became the first transgender woman to win the competition. Now, Monica Van Ee is launching a new platform to "empower and support" young women, together with current Miss Netherlands Amber Rustenburg.
What about Belgium?
Darline Devos, who organises the beauty pageant in Belgium is not considering scraping the show, despite the news from across the border. Devos claimed that Belgium has much more of a "miss culture" than the Netherlands. "We still have 1,500 entries every year."
"Here, the winner of Miss Belgium is our ambassador for a whole year. We also make sure she is well-coached and can work with us for a year. Mental health is really important as well. Our Miss Belgium also represents our country at the Miss Universe and Miss World pageants," Devos told VRT.
Additionally, Miss Belgium gets a lot of press attention, but in the Netherlands many do not even know who Miss Netherlands is. "In Belgium, she also gets a salary, but this is not the case in the Netherlands."
Miss Netherlands 2024, Amber Rustenburg. Credit: Miss Nederland
The Netherlands works with a different, more fragmented system. "There are actually three Miss Netherlands elections: one for Miss World, one for Miss Universe and then another Miss Netherlands."
Still, the beauty pageant has also received much criticism in Belgium over the last few years, mainly for focusing mainly on the candidates' body and looks. Devos, however, disagrees with those comments.
"It is ridiculous that we are criticised for this because girls themselves share bikini photos on Instagram, for example. A bikini round is just part of a beauty pageant," she said. "To those who only watch the show, it may seem superficial, but they do not think about what we accomplish. Next week, for example, we are going to plant a forest in Zwevegem to make the girls environmentally aware and educate them about climate change."
