Fashion

And The Miss USA Runners Up Are…

by Jodie Layne

51 enter, only one leaves a champion — it's not The Hunger Games, it's Miss USA. This year, Olivia Jordan of Oklahoma took home the coveted crown in Baton Rouge and left 50 other contestants behind in her wake: But who were the runners up at the 2015 Miss USA pageant? While everyone put forth a solid effort — and by that, I mean "rocked out" their swimsuits and evening gowns while giving it their best shot at the ridiculous interview questions, Ylianna Guerra from Texas and Anea Garcia from Rhode Island were named second and first runners up, respectively. Miss Nevada, Brittany McGowan, and Miss Maryland, Mame Adjei, rounded out the top five with fourth and fifth place.

While Miss Rhode Island's inspiring story about experiencing homelessness as a child and her incredible poise made her a front runner early on, she fumbled her answers during the interview questions. Miss Oklahoma's graceful comments about America being a place where some receive unfair advantages and privileges, while reminding the crowd that we still have so much work to do when it comes to racial and gender equality, were definitely crown-worthy.

Literally pitting women against each other in competition always feels kind of strange, especially with the myth of female competition, and among so much talk of how "important it is to support other women" during the show.

These women were all gorgeous, diverse, and extremely accomplished, though. I know you've heard it before, but they're totally all winners in my eyes.

Images: Getty; Reelz; THR/Twitter