At 58, the oldest Miss Universe Canada contestant ever is pursuing her pageant ‘goals and dreams’

For one thing, the Miss Universe pageant (yes, the one co-owned by Donald J. Trump from 1996 to 2015) has dropped its age requirement for the 2024 competitions. For the first time in 72 years, entrants over the age of 28 are permitted, along with married, pregnant, lesbian and trans women.

Last week, 60-year-old lawyer Alejandra Marisa Rodriguez competed in Miss Universe Argentina to much fanfare. The reigning Miss Buenos Aires ultimately lost the competition (though she did take the lesser award of “best face”) but won international fame for the groundbreaking showing.

“As a result of what happened to me, I believe a new door has opened for many people,” she told the Associated Press.

We have a trailblazer here on the home front, too: Lorraine Peters, 58, is making history as the oldest contestant in Miss Universe Canada. Set to be held in Windsor, Ont., this July, the winner will go on to compete in the Miss Universe international pageant.

Speaking from her home in Rothesay, N.B., Peters said entering Miss Universe is about sending a message “wrapped up in the package of a nearly-60-year-old woman.” Whether she wins or not is beside the point.

Beauty pageants have often been a launch pad for modelling or acting careers. Case in point: Priyanka Chopra Jonas won the 2000 Miss World title and went on to acting stardom in both her native India and then Hollywood.

Peters’ goal is different: she wants to change the way older women are viewed and treated. “The message, either overtly or subliminally, is we are no longer relevant,” she said. “Over age 50, you are supposed to get in your box and stay there.” This is dangerous, she believes, because “if you don’t seek to change that narrative it has serious implications, for instance in the kinds of health care programs aimed at older women.”

Peters began competing in pageants in 1980 at the age of 15, then took a long hiatus from 19 until her early 40s, when she took up the sashes again. In one early competition after her return, “I got massacred by the Southern ladies,” she said of the region where pageants are a way of life. “It took me a while to lick my wounds, but I learned so much.” She hired a coach, put in the work and won three consecutive titles after that. She has competed seven times and won five regional and national titles, most recently Miss Diversity New Brunswick 2022.

Peters said she competes “not just for older women, but for any woman who wants to fully express herself, and to show her strengths and talents.”

In her day job, Peters runs the modelling agency and coaching business L Models as well as The Personal Development Academy; she also works with agencies supporting newcomers to the province to offer soft skills training and professional development. “My whole career has been around instilling confidence and leadership, pursuing goals and dreams,” she said.

Peters has also been a fitness instructor, which she said helps with the choreography aspect of pageants, and has built a residential real estate company alongside her husband over the past 30 years. It’s all about range, she said. “I can be an executive, and I can be sexy on a Friday night. I can be silly or I can talk about difficult things.”

The 64 Miss Universe Canada contestants are selected by internal judges after rounds of interviews. In the final competition, said Peters, the personality interview counts for 30 per cent of the score; it includes questions on “politics, pop culture, general interest; what you stand with, what you care about, what you do for your community.”

The eveningwear and swimsuit competitions count for 25 per cent each, with the remaining 20 per cent accrued during pre-show events. Contestants do all their own styling and grooming. Peters is now proudly 95 per cent grey, she said. Looking polished is important, but she believes “what I say is what matters.”

The one area that gives her pause is returning to heels after the pandemic. “I used to wear six-inch heels, and that is what all those other women will be in,” she said. “I had to downgrade to five inches.” This requires as much training—of ankle muscles and ligaments—as the presentation components. “I’ve been practicing for months. You have to be so good at [walking in heels] that you don’t even think about it.”

Thus far, Peters said the feedback on her pageant participation has been positive. But she fears that in this world of keyboard hecklers, a backlash may come. “This will absolutely take a dark turn at some point,” she said. “I have prepared my kids.” She reassured her two daughters, aged 21and 23, and a son, 37, that “there is nothing that can shake me.”

Her fears are not unfounded.

South of the border, both Miss USA, Noelia Voigt, and Miss Teen USA, UmaSofia Srivastava, resigned their crowns last month, citing mental health and a mismatch of values, respectively. Soon after, their mothers appeared on Good Morning America, and Barbara Srivastava said their daughters were “ill-treated, abused, bullied and cornered.” She concluded: “the job of their dreams turned out to be a nightmare.”

Earlier this week, leaked video footage showed Miss Universe co-owner Anne Jakapong Jakrajutatip saying the brand’s new inclusivity is merely for show. “The trans women, the women with husbands, the divorced women….this is a communications strategy, but they cannot win,” she said, while discussing the Miss Universe reality TV show. She also talked about controlling the audience so they don’t vote for women of “big size.” Jakrajutatip, who is trans, has said the footage was taken out of context.

Elsewhere in the Miss Universe universe, model Chelsea Manalo made headlines in May when she became the first Black woman to win Miss Universe Philippines; her victory was greeted as a sign of progress and a challenge to local beauty standards pertaining to race and skin tone.

In recent years, many new pageants have sprung up, some with a focus on diversity or social justice. For instance, trans contestants competed for the Miss Pink Nepal crown on May 17, the International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia.

Closer to home, there is Miss Earth Canada (for conservation-minded contestants, who must be under 28) and the Toronto-based Miss Face of Humanity (though entrants must be “naturally born female”).

There are also pageants for specialty interests, from Miss Klingon Empire in Atlanta to Miss Drumsticks in Arkansas (judged on legs only).

Miss Toronto Tourism is most notable for its 2010 scandal in which the crown-holder was caught partying it up with Rob Ford. And while the Miss Canada pageant organization folded in 1992, the trademark was purchased in 2009 and the brand revived, with a new focus on personality over looks.

Meanwhile, other lucrative showcases of youthful, hourglass-shaped femininity are also attempting to modernize. The Victoria’s Secret fashion show is coming back, with the brand promising its angel wing-adorned lingerie catwalk will “reflect who we are today.” The show was cancelled five years ago after chief marketing officer Ed Razek resigned in the wake of uproar over his statement that he would never hire “transsexual” models because “the show is a fantasy”; the brand’s first trans model, Valentina Sampaio, was hired days before his resignation.

Swimsuit Illustrated has found tremendous success by casting bathing suit models of all ages and sizes, from Martha Stewart to Gayle King to Canadian model and size-inclusive fashion designer Lauren Chan. Last weekend, Canadian body positivity influencer Sarah Nicole Landry walked the brand’s runway at Miami Swim Week, calling the experience “healing” and “magical.”

When Peters is on the Miss Universe stage in July, what she is determined to display is her energy, enthusiasm and excitement. “I’m a cool woman, I’ve done some cool things. But I’m not unique; there are so many women with this rich tapestry of personality but they are too scared to show it after a certain age.” Getting this message across is what Peters will consider a win.