According to CNN, Former Miss USA Cheslie Kryst died Sunday morning, her family and police said. Kryst, 30, won Miss USA in 2019, died after jumping from her luxury high rise condo building in Manhattan, according to the New York City Police Department.
“In devastation and great sorrow, we share the passing of our beloved Cheslie,” her family said in a statement posted online. “Her great light was one that inspired others around the world with her beauty and strength. She cared, she loved, she laughed and she shined.”
The former Miss USA and correspondent for Extra posted on Instagram shortly before her death. “May this day bring you rest and peace,” she captioned alongside a photo of herself.
Cheslie was a former attorney with a license in both North and South Carolina. She fought for Civil Rights litigation prior to taking a hiatus upon winning Miss USA. She was the longest reigning titleholder (557 days) and made history with four other titleholders, Miss Universe, Miss Teen USA, Miss America and Miss World who were all Black woman and held 5 of the top beauty pageant titles in the world. She placed Top 10 at Miss Universe
Several titleholders, pageant fans and followers of Cheslie took to social media to express their sorrow at this sudden news…
Andreia Gibau, a former Miss New York USA titleholder, share how she was “gutted” by this sudden news and how she had future plans on creating content with Cheslie and meeting up for sweets in New York City soon.
She also held a law and master’s in business degree from Wake Forest University, where she was previously a Division 1 track-and-field athlete at University of South Carolina. She finished practicing law officially and began to develop and invest more into her television career serving as a Correspondent with Extra, a daily entertainment news television program. A producer once called Cheslie a ”vital” part of their program.
During her stay, she was nominated for two Daytime Emmy’s Awards and broke the news Empire actor Terrance Howard was retiring from acting.
Former Miss Universe Catriona Gray shared with many about the loss of light the world will no longer experience.
Newly crowned Miss Teen North Carolina Gabby Ortega’s winning moments was the last post on Chelsie’s Instagram story with a congratulatory post including her and the new Miss North Carolina USA 2022. She shared how she felt confirmations to pursue the title thanks to Cheslie’s inspiration and breaking the mold with her curly hair.
Daughter of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Bernice King, took to Twitter to talk depression and appearance.
Cheslie competed in the Miss America system placing Top 10 at Miss North Carolina on her first try and First Runner-Up on her second attempt prior to competing in the USA system. She competed for Miss North Carolina USA three times, placing Fourth Runner-Up, Top 10, then winning the title on her third try on her last year of eligibility.
She represented North Carolina at the 2019 Miss USA competition whenit was held at the Grand Sierra Resort in Reno, Nevada. She was crowned by outgoing Miss USA Sara Rose Summers. At 28 years and 4 days, she would be the oldest women to be crowned and hold the title of Miss USA since Nana Meriwether in 2012.
During Cheslie’s historic reign, she made numerous appearances with Miss Teen USA Kaleigh Garris and then-Miss America Nia Franklin. One of the stylist from this epic photoshooot in New York City with the trio says it was an ”honor” to style Cheslie’s hair for this look.
After winnng Miss USA, Cheslie took a brief hiatus from law to prepare for the international Miss Universe competition which was held at the Tyler Perry Studios in Atlanta, Georgia. She broke through to the Top 10 and brought the broken mirror design to the evening gown fashion.
As a fashionista, she was the founder and CEO of a popular fashion blog dedicated to styling women for the white collar office. Fans of her almost 300K TikTok following was obsessed with her closet, the backdrop of her videos and Zoom interviews and she was secretly working on a collaboration with Express for a summer project.
National Suicide Hotline 1-800-273-TALK (8255). Please call and reach out if you need help or an ear. You can even text the hotine number. You are not fighting alone.
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