Margaret Gardiner, 65, will serve as a judge in the 73rd edition of Miss Universe. She is the first South African woman to win the title.
Born and raised in Cape Town, South Africa, Gardiner has been living in Los Angeles, California, United States with her husband Dr. Andre Nel since 1989. They got married in South Africa in 1987.
Gardiner is the first ever Miss Universe from South Africa. Representing the African country, Demi-Leigh Tebow and Zozibini Tunzi also won the title in 2017 and 2019, respectively.
Miss Universe 1978
By winning Miss Republic of South Africa 1978, Gardiner became South Africa’s representative in the 27th edition of Miss Universe. Hosted by Bob Barker and Helen O’Connell, the coronation ceremony was held at the Centro de Convenciones de Acapulco in Acapulco, Mexico on July 24, 1978.
Including Gardiner, a total of 75 women competed for the title. She was crowned by Janelle Commissiong of Trinidad and Tobago.
Miss Universe 1953 Christiane Martel served as a judge. She aws joined by Anna Moffo, David Merrick, Dewi Sukarno, Line Renaud, Mario “Cantinflas” Moreno, Melba Moore, Milos Forman, Roberto Cavalli, Ursula Andress and Wilhelmina Cooper.
On July 16, 1977, Cavalli served as a judge at Miss Universe 1977, which was won by Commissiong. The first runner-up was Eva Duringer Cavalli of Austria.
Roberto and Eva were married from 1980 to 2010. He died on April 12, 2024.
Miss Universe 2024
Eva and Gardiner will serve as judges at Miss Universe 2024. They will be joined by Emilio Estefan, Lele Pons and Romero Britto in the selection committee.
Mario Lopez will host the coronation ceremony. Roku, Telemundo, TV Azteca and USA Network will broadcast the show live from the Arena CDMX in Mexico City on November 16, 2024.
A total of 130 women will compete for the title. This edition marks the first time Belarus, Eritrea, Guinea, Iran, Macau, the Maldives, Moldova, North Macedonia, Somalia, the United Arab Emirates and Uzbekistan are represented.
Representing South Africa, Mia le Roux will make history as the first deaf woman to compete for the Miss Universe title. Mexico will be represented by Maria Fernanda Beltran.
CV Stardom 
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