Miss Grand Sues Mr. Nawat: Details on the Legal Battle
A Ukrainian contestant accused the Miss Grand International organizers of causing her physical and mental harm. She said she has hired a lawyer to file a lawsuit.
On the evening of October 19, Kateryna Bilyk – Ukraine’s representative at Miss Grand International (MGI) 2024 – announced her withdrawal before the semi-finals due to health problems. She blamed the contest organizers for this.
“For two weeks, I was required to participate in activities from 8am to 11pm or until midnight every day, even though I had a fever of 37.5 to 38.2 degrees Celsius for the past 11 days. This condition was noted by the Pattaya doctor. The doctor at the Wyndham Jomtien Pattaya hotel also said that my blood pressure was quite high (142/90 and 151/90), along with a fever,” Bilyk said.
Kateryna Bilyk withdrew from the competition before the semi-finals. Photo: @bilykkateryna. |
The contestant said that she was then given an “unknown” pill by the MGI team, which put her at risk of an allergic reaction. According to Bilyk, although the contract clearly stated that MGI was responsible for the contestant, what she received was mental trauma and serious health effects.
“They did not call a doctor when I fainted and forced me to continue working when I had a fever of 38.5 degrees Celsius and a blood pressure of 151/90. In addition, the organizers confiscated my passport. During my three days in Cambodia, they did not allow me to move freely. I have collected all the evidence, including videos, photos, receipts, documents, messages and work schedules,” the 28-year-old girl added.
In her complaint, Bilyk also claimed that MGI management had made threatening phone calls and text messages to her and others. After all that had happened, she was considering legal options to sue the organization. According to the latest update, Bilyk has just returned to Ukraine and said that she has hired a lawyer.
The Miss Grand International Organizing Committee and Mr. Nawat have not yet commented on the above accusation.
Thus, after Bilyk withdrew, the competition only had 71 contestants left. Previously, two other representatives, Cambodia and Costa Rica, also withdrew from the competition for different reasons.
The 12th MGI season has been going on since early October with a lot of turmoil and noise. The contestants have gone through most of the sub-contests. The final night of the competition is scheduled to be held on October 25.