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Missed congeniality: Beauty pageant organiser accused of calling contestant a 'dumbhead'
The organiser of Miss Universe has told Sky News he cannot stand down from his position - despite allegations he was aggressive towards a contestant.
In a video that's now gone viral, Nawat Itsaragrisil appeared to reprimand Miss Mexico after she had failed to post promotional content about Thailand - this year's host country - online. Reporters at the event claimed he had called Fatima Bosch a "dumbhead" - something he has firmly denied.
After the verbal altercation, she replied: "You are not respecting me as a woman." Nawat then called for security and Bosch walked out of the room. She was joined by other contestants in a show of solidarity, including the reigning Miss Universe.
The pageant's president, Mexican businessman Raul Rocha, has described his behaviour as "public aggression" and "serious abuse". At a news conference, Nawat insisted he had used the word "damage" rather than "dumbhead" - and urged reporters to check footage of the incident online.
However, he added: "This issue has dragged me down to this point. I understand and I apologise." When pressed further by journalists, Nawat appeared to start sobbing and said: "I am a human who can feel hurt." He has also apologised to contestants, adding: "If anyone (was) affected and not comfortable, it happened, I am so sorry.
It's passed. Okay? Are you happy?" The controversy has overshadowed the Miss Universe contest, with several events to go until the grand final on 21 November..
Amir Nisi
Creative and experienced content writer with 6+ years of experience lazy to create unique content strategy for News5 to turn website visitors into customers.
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