Miss Grand International president Nawat Itsaragrisil’s actions that have sparked backlash over the years

(From L) Miss Grand International (MGI) president Nawat Itsaragrisil, Miss Grand Myanmar 2024 Thae Su Nyein, and MGI vice president Teresa Chaivisut. Photo from Thae's Instagram

This year’s MGI pageant saw a war of words between Itsaragrisil, Myanmar’s representative Thae Su Nyein, and national director Htoo Ant Lwin, with the pageant president stating that Thae "lacks maturity" and Htoo accusing Itsaragrisil of accepting US$25,000 from an Indonesian pageant official in exchange for a crown, as per The Straits Times.

These tensions brought significant attention to Itsaragrisil. However, this is not the first time the pageant president has been involved in controversy.

Following the 2022 pageant, Itsaragrisil made a statement in an online video, claiming that Vietnam’s representative Doan Thien An did not have a proportional body. He described her upper body as noticeably longer than her lower body and her torso as too large, arguing that it was a fair result for An to finish in the Top 20 at the pageant finals.

Going back to 2016, while preparing for that year’s pageant, Icelandic representative Arna Ýr Jónsdóttir also received a message about her body from Itsaragrisil, which was conveyed through his spokesperson, according to Iceland Monitor.

"Stop eating breakfast, eat just salad for lunch and drink water every evening until the contest," the message read. "[Itsaragrisil] is telling you this because he likes you and wants you to do well in this contest."

In response, Jónsdóttir dropped out of the competition.

"If the owner of the contest really wants me to lose weight and doesn’t like me the way I am, then he doesn’t deserve to have me in the Top 10," she said. "Yes, my shoulders are a bit broader than the other girls’ but that is because I was a member of the Icelandic national athletics team and I am proud of that."

"Personally, I think I’m fine as I am," she stated.

A rule introduced by Itsaragrisil in 2023, which stated that contestants who had previously participated in Miss Universe Thailand were no longer eligible to compete in Miss Grand Thailand 2023, also sparked controversy, according to Tien Phong Newspaper.

Itsaragrisil ruled that provincial Miss Grand contests in Thailand must comply with this new regulation, and any local director who violated the rule would have their license revoked.

Many saw this rule as narrow-minded and selfish, with critics arguing that it would prevent many potential contestants from participating in the Miss Grand pageant.

Before introducing this rule, Itsaragrisil had also repeatedly criticized the Miss Universe competition. One such instance occurred during the opening video of the Miss Grand International 2022 contest, where the organizers created an effect in which the letters "MU," representing Miss Universe, were sent flying off Earth and replaced by "MG," representing Miss Grand.

Itsaragrisil, a 53-year-old Thai television host and producer, founded the MGI contest in 2013. The pageant focuses on humanitarian causes, with titleholders serving as spokespersons for the organization and participating in charity events to promote these campaigns throughout their reign.

Contestants are selected by franchise holders in their respective countries or territories, either through national competitions, internal casting, or direct selection.