Huge twist at the Miss Netherlands beauty contest the other night; transgender woman Rikkie Valerie Kollé has taken home the crown just months after completing her gender affirmation surgery.

Kollé, who changed her name from Rik to Rikkie at age 11, is now a 22-year-old beauty pageant champion and has thus qualified for the Miss Universe contest in January 2024.

She celebrated her win with the following message on Instagram:

It’s unreal but I get to call myself @missnederland 2023. It was an educational and beautiful journey, my year can’t be broken anymore. I’m so proud and happy I can’t even describe it. Making my community proud and showing it can be done.

And yes I’m trans and I want to share my story but I’m also Rikkie and that’s what matters to me. Did this on my own and loved every moment of it. ❤️

Kollé is in with a decent chance of winning Miss Universe, especially as it’s now owned by Thai businesswoman Anne Jakkaphong Jakrajutatip – a trans woman. She also owns the Miss USA and Miss Teen USA beauty pageants.

Trans women have actually been eligible to join these competitions since 2012, but it wasn’t until 2018 when Angela Ponce, from Spain, became the first transgender woman to step up. She was followed by Kataluna Enriquez, who joined the Miss USA pageant in 2021, and now Kollé, who has become the first trans woman to win one of these contests.

Obviously there’s a big split online between those who support this as a victory for inclusion and progressiveness and those who believe it’s a massive blow to women’s rights to have a biological man not only take a woman’s spot in the competition but also win it above all the biological women who competed. In the end, I guess it’s just a vanity show and an argument that no one can really win. Onto Miss Universe!