Governor Sophon met a total of 77 participants representing administrative divisions from all over the country at Provincial Hall yesterday morning who will be competing in the preliminary final ahead of the grand final in Bangkok on Apr 6.
Joining Governor Sophon at yesterday’s welcome ceremony were Nawat Isra Kraisil, CEO of Miss Grand International Public Company Limited (MGI), and Teerasak Phon-ngam (Khun Kim), owner of Tu Kab Khao restaurant who is responsible for organising the event and looking after all contestants while they are in Phuket.
In his welcome remarks, Governor Sophon explained that Phuket is the perfect destination to stage such an occasion, pointing out the many highlights that the island has to offer, including the fact it is a world class tourist destination with an outstanding cultural identity.
Governor Sophon went on to thank the organisers for choosing Phuket as the location for the Miss Thailand preliminary final, while also wishing all the contestants good luck for the event as well as a happy and healthy life.
The Phuket event will be held over four days starting from Sunday (Mar 17) at the 4,000-seater Saphan Hin Municipal Stadium. The event schedule is as follows:
- Mar 17: Southern Thai costume contest
- Mar 18: Swimsuit contest
- Mar 19: Miss Darling of Phuket
- Mar 20: Grand Concert Live in Phuket
At yesterday’s welcome ceremony at Provincial Hall Mr Theerasak explained that the main prize for the Southern Thai costume contest to be held on Sunday had been increased by B100,000 and now stands at B200,000, an announcement that drew enthusiastic applause from the 77 contestants present.
Following the ceremony a photo shoot involving all contestants, Governor Sophon and his wife Busadee Suwannarat was arranged.
Songkhla was originally chosen as the host province for the preliminary final. However, a conflict of interest regarding the political views of the organiser MGI and the local Songkhla government saw the event changed to Phuket.
The grand final will take place in Bangkok, as is always the case. The winning contestent will secure the right to represent Thailand at Miss Grand International 2024, which is to be held in Yangon, Myanmar on Oct 25 this year.