SINGAPORE - Lasalle College of the Arts student Cheryl Chou, 20, was crowned Miss Universe Singapore 2016 on Sunday night (Oct 16) at the grand finals of the beauty pageant.

She triumphed over 14 other finalists for the coveted title. Other beauties included Temasek Polytechnic student Tanisha Khan, 18, the first runner-up, while the second runner-up was Sonya Branson, 25, a full-time model.

Ms Chou will go on to represent Singapore on the world stage at the international Miss Universe pageant in January in the Philippines.

She walked away with a $10,000 cash prize, $24,000 of beauty and wellness services from Beaute Hub, up to $20,000 of dental aesthetic services from Orchard Scotts Dental, $9,000 of training sessions from Bodyburn Fitness Singapore and a Canon camera worth $1,000.

This year's pageant is co-organised by The New Paper and Miss Universe Singapore Organisation, and presented by the Singapore Turf Club.

The judging panel of seven included national director of Miss Universe Singapore and winner of the 2002 title Nuraliza Osman, The New Paper deputy editor Murali Subramaniam, as well as show producer and fashion consultant Daniel Boey.

About 300 guests attended the glitzy black-tie affair held at the grand ballroom of the Grand Copthorne Waterfront Hotel, a far cry from the low-key closed-door selection process for last year's Miss Universe Singapore.

There were performances by Singapore Idol 3 winner Sezairi Sezali and Singaporean jazz flautist Rit Xu.

gurveenk@sph.com.sg