Veronika Didusenko, 24, was crowned Miss Ukraine in 2018 but was stripped of the title four days later when it was discovered that she had been divorced and has a son.
The Ukrainian model has now launched a legal challenge against the Miss World beauty contest after she was banned from the competition.
In the Miss World Finals, she should have represented her country but was banned and replaced by another candidate.
According to Veronika who felt humilated, the bosses of the UK-owned Miss World franchise have violated the Equalities Act 2010 have petitioned that they amend their “outdated” entry rules.
She said: “It was really humiliating when I was disqualified. I was very upset. I had to hand back the title, the crown and prize money. “I couldn’t believe they would do such a thing in this day and age. “Why does having a son and being previously married disqualify me? It’s shocking.”
Veronika, who travels to modelling jobs with son Alex, five, added: “I can’t believe these rules still exist. They are archaic. I think they are breaching equalities laws.”
Meanwhile the model has taken to her Instagram page to appreciate everyone who had been supporting her campaign..
In October 2018, Viktoria Kiose, the executive director of Miss Ukraine told Russian news outlet RT that Didusenko knew what she was signing up for when she entered the contest.
“She signed the contract, and agreed to its conditions. She flouted the rules and lied to us, so we disqualified her,” Kiose said.
Her lawyers confirmed they had written to Miss World threatening legal action.
“We hope that Miss World will take this opportunity to engage with us and update its discriminatory rules,” Ravi Naik of ITN Solicitors said by email on Monday.
He said they also planned to file a complaint with Britain’s Equality and Human Rights Commission, an independent regulatory body.
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