Cheslie Kryst

Cheslie Corrinne Kryst (born April 28, 1991) is an American attorney, television presenter and beauty pageant titleholder who was crowned Miss USA 2019.[2] She was also the oldest Miss USA to be crowned and the longest-reigning titleholder in the pageant's 68 years of history. As Miss USA, she represented the United States at the Miss Universe 2019 competition and finished in the top ten. Previously, she had been crowned Miss North Carolina USA 2019, becoming the third woman from North Carolina to win Miss USA. Outside of pageantry, Kryst is a licensed attorney and has served as a correspondent for Extra since October 2019.[3][4]

Cheslie Kryst
Born
Cheslie Corrinne Kryst

(1991-04-28) April 28, 1991
Jackson, Michigan, U.S.
Alma materUniversity of South Carolina (BS)
Wake Forest University (JD; MBA)
Height1.68 m (5 ft 6 in)[1]
TitleMiss North Carolina USA 2019
Miss USA 2019
Beauty pageant titleholder
Hair colorBlack
Eye colorBrown
Major
competition(s)		Miss USA 2019
(Winner)
Miss Universe 2019
(Top 10)

With her win, 2019 became the first year that all four major United States-based pageants were won by black women; other titleholders were Zozibini Tunzi of South Africa (as Miss Universe 2019), Nia Franklin (as Miss America 2019) and Kaliegh Garris (as Miss Teen USA 2019).[5][6][7][8]

Early life and education

Kryst was born on April 28, 1991, in Jackson, Michigan, to a Polish American father and an African American mother. She has four brothers, Asa, Chandler, Jet and Brooklyn, and a sister, Page.[9][10][11][12] Her mother, April Simpkins, competed in pageantry and was crowned Mrs. North Carolina US when Kryst was a child. Kryst grew up in Charlotte, North Carolina, but moved with her family to Rock Hill, South Carolina to attend Northwestern High School.[13] The family later moved to Fort Mill, South Carolina and Kryst transferred to Fort Mill High School, graduating in 2009; both cities are suburbs in the Charlotte metropolitan area.[14]

After graduating from high school, Kryst moved to Columbia, South Carolina to attend the Honors College at the University of South Carolina. She graduated from the Darla Moore School of Business with a degree in marketing and human resource management in 2013, where she was also a member of the Alpha Lambda Delta honor society, Gamecocks women's track and field team, and mock trial.[15][16]

After finishing her undergraduate degree, Kryst enrolled in Wake Forest University School of Law in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, graduating with a Juris Doctor and Master of Business Administration in 2017.[17][16][18]

Kryst is a member of the Democratic Party.

Law career

Following her graduation, Kryst became licensed to practice law in both North Carolina and South Carolina and began working as an attorney at Poyner Spruill LLP, practicing complex civil litigation.[16][19] She also worked pro bono for clients who were low-level drug offenders, including her work with Brittany K. Barnett of the Buried Alive Project, supported by Kim Kardashian West, to free a client sentenced to life imprisonment.[20][21] She is the founder of the fashion blog White Collar Glam, dedicated to helping women dress professionally in white-collar jobs.[22][23]

Pageantry

Kryst began her pageantry career as a teenager, winning Miss Freshman at Northwestern High School in Rock Hill, South Carolina, and later Miss Fort Mill High School in Fort Mill, South Carolina.[14] After taking several years off from pageantry, Kryst made two attempts to win the Miss North Carolina title, placing in the top ten her first attempt and first runner-up on her second attempt.[14]

Miss USA 2019

In 2016, Kryst competed in Miss North Carolina USA 2017, where she placed as the fourth runner-up. She returned the following year and placed in the top ten, before returning again for Miss North Carolina USA 2019, where she won the title representing Metrolina. She was crowned by Miss North Carolina Teen USA 2018 Kaaviya Sambasivam, as the outgoing titleholder Caelynn Miller-Keyes was unable to attend the crowning due to the filming of season 23 of The Bachelor.[24][25]

As Miss North Carolina USA, Kryst was given the right to represent North Carolina at the Miss USA 2019 competition, held at the Grand Sierra Resort in Reno, Nevada. She went on to win the competition and became the third woman from North Carolina to win the title, following Chelsea Cooley and Kristen Dalton, who were crowned Miss USA 2005 and Miss USA 2009, respectively.

At 28 years and 4 days, Kryst became the oldest person to be crowned Miss USA, breaking the previous record held by Nana Meriwether, who was 27 years, 6 months, and 26 days old upon assuming the title.[lower-alpha 1][26][27][28][29] After winning Miss USA, Kryst crowned Laura Little as her successor for the Miss North Carolina USA title.[30]

As Miss USA, Kryst took a one-year leave of absence from her law career to fulfill her pageantry duties. She represented the United States at the Miss Universe 2019 competition on December 8, 2019 and finished in the top ten.[23][19][12]

Television hosting

In October 2019, Kryst became a correspondent for Extra, after serving as a special correspondent in September 2019.[31] Her interview with actor Terrence Howard was the first to break the news that the actor planned to retire from acting following the final season of the television series Empire.[32]

Notes
  1. Meriwether was solely the oldest woman to hold the Miss USA title, as she did not win the crown but assumed the title after Olivia Culpo won Miss Universe 2012 and was forced to relinquish her Miss USA crown to the first runner-up. Olivia Jordan was previously the oldest woman to win Miss USA, being 26 years, 9 months, and 14 days old after winning Miss USA 2015.

References
  1. "Cheslie Kryst (Miss USA) Height, Weight, Age, Bio, Family & Boyfriend". Dreshare – via dreshare.com.
  2. "Miss USA & Teen USA 2019 - Pageant Planet". www.pageantplanet.com. Retrieved 2019-05-26.
  3. "Miss North Carolina USA & Miss North Carolina Teen USA 2019 - Pageant Planet". www.pageantplanet.com. Retrieved 2019-05-26.
  4. "Cheslie Kryst". www.pageantplanet.com. Retrieved 2019-05-26.
  5. Harmata, Claudia (December 10, 2019). "Making History: Current Miss Universe, Miss USA, Miss America, Miss Teen USA Are All Black Women". People. Retrieved December 10, 2019.
  6. Ruiz-Grossman, Sarah (May 3, 2019). "Miss USA, Miss Teen USA, Miss America Are All Black Women For First Time In Pageant History". Huffington Post.
  7. Peck, Patrice (May 3, 2019). "Miss America, Miss USA, And Miss Teen USA Are All Black Women, And I'm All Like "OKAY LADIES, NOW LET'S GET IN FORMATION!"". Buzzfeed.
  8. Diaz, Thatiana (May 3, 2019). "3 Black Women Just Made Pageant History — & The Internet Is Celebrating". Refinery29.
  9. Alford, Natasha S. (May 9, 2019). "WATCH: Miss USA 2019 has words for strangers who keep touching her hair". The Grio.
  10. "It's the 28th and I just turned 28!!". Cheslie Kryst. April 28, 2019.
  11. "Setting Her Sights". South Park Magazine. November 4, 2019.
  12. Hanner, Carol (June 24, 2019). "Double Deac Miss USA". Wake Forest Magazine. Retrieved June 25, 2019.
  13. "Meet Charlotte native Cheslie Kryst, also known as Miss USA". WCNC. Retrieved 2020-04-14.
  14. Bollinger, Cristina (May 2, 2019). "Miss North Carolina USA, a Charlotte lawyer, takes the crown. She's the new Miss USA". News Observer.
  15. Blair, Anthony (May 2, 2019). "Miss USA 2019: Beauty and brains as lawyer, 28, takes home top prize: 'Go girl'". Daily Star.
  16. "Cheslie C. Kryst". Cheslie Kryst. Retrieved May 2, 2019.
  17. Sonner, Scott (May 2, 2019). "The Latest: Lawyer from North Carolina wins Miss USA 2019". Washington Post.
  18. "North Carolina". Miss Universe Organization. Retrieved May 2, 2019.
  19. "Cheslie Kryst, Associate". Poyner Spruill. Retrieved June 25, 2019.
  20. "Miss USA Cheslie Kryst helped free a man sentenced to life in prison for a drug offense and says marijuana should be legal". Business Insider. Retrieved 14 April 2020.
  21. "Miss USA Cheslie Kryst Reveals She Is Helping Free Inmates With 'Excessive Sentences' Like Kim Kardashian". Hollywood Life. Retrieved 14 April 2020.
  22. "Miss North Carolina Cheslie Kryst, Miss USA 2019 Winner: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know". Heavy. May 2, 2019.
  23. "The new Miss USA is a North Carolina lawyer who works on behalf of prison inmates". CNN. Retrieved 3 May 2019.
  24. "Miss North Carolina USA & Miss North Carolina Teen USA Pageant Results". PageantUpdate. Retrieved May 2, 2019.
  25. Drabble, Jenny; Felder, Lynn (October 25, 2018). "Miss America returning to her hometown of Winston-Salem for downtown parade, appearance". Winston-Salem Journal.
  26. Fink, Jenni (May 2, 2019). "WHO WON MISS USA? MISS NORTH CAROLINA CHESLIE KRYST TAKES THE CROWN". Newsweek.
  27. Stone, Natalie (May 2, 2019). "Miss North Carolina Cheslie Kryst Is Crowned Miss USA 2019". People.
  28. "North Carolina lawyer Cheslie Kryst takes the Miss USA crown". USA Today. May 2, 2019.
  29. Heller, Corinne (May 2, 2019). "Miss North Carolina Cheslie Kryst Crowned Miss USA 2019". E!.
  30. "Newly crowned Miss USA returns to Charlotte, advocates for justice". WSOC TV. May 14, 2019.
  31. "'Extra' Adds Miss USA 2019 Cheslie Kryst as Correspondent". Extra. October 7, 2019.
  32. "'Empire' Star Terrence Howard Says He's Done with Acting Once the Show Ends". Extra. September 11, 2019.
Awards and achievements
Preceded by
Caelynn Miller-Keyes		 Miss North Carolina USA
2019		 Succeeded by
Laura Little
Preceded by
Sarah Rose Summers		 Miss USA
2019		 Succeeded by
Asya Branch
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