Miss Italy Bans Transgender Pageant Contestants, Owner Says ‘You Must Be a Woman From Birth’

The Miss Italia pageant has banned transgender contestants, declaring that to be eligible, you “must be a woman from birth.”

News of the Italian pageant’s stance comes shortly after the Miss Netherlands competition crowned a transgender biological male as their winner — sending him to the 72nd Miss Universe pageant.

In an Italian interview with Radio Cusano, Miss Italy Official Patron Patrizia Mirigliani said, “lately, beauty contests have been trying to make the news by also using strategies that I think are a bit absurd.”

“Since it was born, my competition has foreseen in its regulation the clarification according to which one must be a woman from birth. Probably because, even then, it was foreseen that beauty could undergo modifications, or that women could undergo modifications, or that men could become women,” Mirigliani added, according to a Google translation of a report from Il Primato Nazionale.

Miss Italy beauty pageant BANS transgender competitors.

The owner of the Miss Italia pageant Patrizia Mirigliani has announced biological males are banned from competing in the women’s beauty contest.

“My competition provides in its rules the clarification that you must be a… pic.twitter.com/cKsmAQib0F

— Oli London (@OliLondonTV) July 21, 2023

Earlier this month, Rikkie Valerie Kolle, 22, won the Miss Netherlands beauty pageant, becoming the first transgender-identifying person to do so.

Kolle was crowned by predecessor Ona Moody and USA’s reigning Miss Universe R’Bonney Gabriel.

Rikkie Valerie Kolle beat every woman to become the first ever male Miss Netherlands! 🥳 #MissNetherlands2023 pic.twitter.com/c35KhTSRix

— Planet Cringe 😣 (@planetcringe) July 9, 2023

Kolle will now become the second transgender person to compete in Miss Universe, following Angela Ponce from Spain in 2018. Earlier this year, Daniela Arroyo González, who is also a transgender biological male, was chosen to compete in the Puerto Rico competition.

The pageant changed the rules in 2012, allowing biological males who identify as women to compete for titles.

This is nothing to celebrate.🚨This is a slap in the face to every single woman who competed against this biological male in a competition designed SPECIFICALLY for women. https://t.co/jtEBOnjfOK

— Independent Women’s Voice (@IWV) July 10, 2023

The 72nd Miss Universe competition will be held in El Salvador in December.