Miss Vietnam organisers forced to apologise for yellow see-through dress on TV

Phuong Anh was on TV at the 2022 Miss Vietnam beauty pageant. Photo / Twitter, Miss Universe

A beauty queen has been slammed by angry viewers for wearing a “see-through” dress on stage.

Organisers of the 2022 Miss Vietnam beauty pageant have been forced to apologise after an uproar over a contestant’s transparent gown.

Model Phuong Anh was seen wearing a “flimsy” yellow dress with sheer material that showed off her body underneath.

The 24-year-old had been on stage to give the first runner-up title to contestant Trinh Thuy Linh.

Phuong – who was the first runner-up in the 2020 competition – said she felt “ashamed” by the outfit, adding she had “learnt a lesson” in her fashion choices.

And the organisers of the event issued an apology to angry fans over the controversial dress.

“It’s very unfortunate that an incident happened to the outfit of runner-up Pham Ngoc Phuong Anh,” they said, in a statement shared by VnExpress.

“The dress when seen from certain angles created an unflattering image on stage.

“The organisers of the 2022 Miss Vietnam apologise to the audience and fans for not having anticipated and being unable to prevent the incident beforehand.”

With back-lighting, Phuong Anh's yellow dress showed off her body underneath. Photo / Twitter

The deputy head of the organising committee, Pham Kim Dung, said the outfits worn on stage are normally very carefully selected before the event.

However, on this occasion, not all the lights were turned on during the rehearsal, meaning they apparently did not see any issues with the dress, she said.

Social media platforms were flooded with comments from viewers who were irate about the dress, while others rushed to the defence of Phuong Anh.

“The ridiculous profanity leading to the cultural repulsion of the Miss Vietnam contest,” one Twitter user wrote.

“This outfit is not appropriate even for a beauty contest,” another said on Facebook.

“It does not look good on television. She should be more careful next time.”

“She wore a bodysuit underneath, not underwear, and so I do not see anything inappropriate here,” another person posted.

“People are overreacting. I think the organisers are also to blame for this incident. They have a team for monitoring the outfits and still let this happen.”

The Miss Universe beauty pageant underwent some groundbreaking new changes last year.

For the first time in the institution’s history, the competition has expanded its eligibility rules to allow married women and mothers to compete.

The historic changes will be in place for the first time in the 2023 competition.

The current 70-year-old rule states that only single women aged between 18 and 28, who have never been married or had children, are allowed to apply.

The age bracket however, will remain the same, a source close to the organisation confirmed to Insider.

“We all believe that women should have agency over their lives and that a human’s personal decisions should not be a barrier to their success,” an internal memo seen by The National said.