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Beauty queens brand Miss World a ‘contest for virgins’ amid calls to axe bar on mums entering

BEAUTY queens have branded Miss World a “contest for virgins” amid calls to axe its bar on mums from entering.

More than 25,000 people have signed a petition urging contest bosses to change its “outdated” rules, which also ban married women.

Beauty queens have brand Miss World a 'contest for virgins'
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Beauty queens have brand Miss World a 'contest for virgins'Credit: AFP - Getty
Holly Carpenter condemned the organisation as 'outdated' and 'bizarre'
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Holly Carpenter condemned the organisation as 'outdated' and 'bizarre'Credit: Handout - Getty

The petition was launched by Veronika Didusenko, 25, who was stripped of her 2018 Miss Ukraine crown and banned from entering Miss World when it emerged she had a son.

She said: “I can’t believe these rules still exist. They’re 70 years old. They’re prehistoric, outdated, archaic.

“They also imply a woman’s worth is defined by her virginity.”

, a 2011 Miss Ireland contestant, called the Miss World organisation “backward”.

Veronika Didusenko was stripped of her 2018 Miss Ukraine crown when it emerged she had a son
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Veronika Didusenko was stripped of her 2018 Miss Ukraine crown when it emerged she had a sonCredit: Rex Features
Miss World boss Julia Morley said the rules were in place to protect kids
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Miss World boss Julia Morley said the rules were in place to protect kidsCredit: Rex Features

Student midwife Blue Scannell, from Dublin, quit this year’s contest, saying she could not square her job supporting mums with a ­contest “that singles them out”.

In 2019, the Equality and Human Rights Commission decided that the UK-based pageant should not have to change its rules as only a few women take part.

Miss World boss Julia Morley said the rules were in place to protect kids as winners travel the world on engagements.

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