After being hounded over her nationality and forced to drop out of the Miss South Africa contest, Chidimma Adetshina has been crowned beauty queen of a totally different country.<\/p>\n
Ms Adetshina cried tears of joy as she was named Miss Universe Nigeria on Saturday.<\/p>\n
“This crown is not just for beauty; it’s a call for unity,” the 23-year-old law student stated after weeks at the centre of an intense media storm.<\/p>\n
She was invited to participate in Miss Universe Nigeria after her position as a finalist in the Miss South Africa contest sparked a wave of criticism.<\/p>\n
Some people in South Africa had questioned her eligibility to compete in the beauty pageant because despite being a South African citizen, Ms Adetshina’s father is Nigerian and her mother has Mozambican roots.<\/p>\n
In interviews Ms Adetshina said she was born in Soweto – the South African township next to Johannesburg – and grew up in Cape Town.<\/p>\n
The row over her nationality sparked an investigation with the organisers of Miss South Africa asking the nation’s home affairs department to look into her eligibility.<\/p>\n
After an initial probe, the department announced that Miss Adetshina’s mother may have committed “identity theft” to become a South African national.<\/p>\n
However, the statement added that Ms Adetshina “could not have participated in the alleged unlawful actions of her mother as she was an infant at the time”.<\/p>\n
A day after the announcement, Ms Adetshina dropped out of the contest, saying she took the decision for her and her family’s safety and wellbeing.<\/p>\n
By now, her ordeal had made headlines around the world.<\/p>\n
After hearing of Ms Adetshina’s story, the organisers of Miss Universe Nigeria invited her to participate in their contest.<\/p>\n
They said she would be able to “represent her father’s native land on the international stage”.<\/p>\n
After winning the contest on Saturday, Ms Adetshina will represent Nigeria at November’s Miss Universe competition.<\/p>\n
Her rivals will include Mia le Roux, who won this year’s Miss South Africa competition after Ms Adetshina dropped out.<\/p>\n
Ms le Roux became the first deaf woman in history to win the crown.<\/p>\n