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Leanza Cornett has unfortunately passed away at the young age of 49.

The Miss America Organization revealed the somber news of Leanza, who was crowned Miss America in 1993.

“Leanza had a bright and beautiful spirit and her laugh was infectious. We know she meant so much to so many, including all of you,” the organization shared in a tribute post. “We are devastated by this sudden loss in our Miss America family and we are deeply sorry for her family and close friends for their loss.”

They added, “At the moment, we do not have any further information regarding a service for Leanza and we ask that you please respect her family during this difficult time.”

The NBC News affiliate News 4 Jax in Jacksonville, Fla., reported tonight (October 28) that Leanza had passed away after being hospitalized for a head injury.

More details about her injury were revealed on a Facebook page called Leanza’s Circle of Love.

Last week, the page explained that “she sustained an enormous blow to the back of her head. The surgery she had on Tuesday was to stop the bleeding in her brain. Right now there is some continued bleeding and swelling. Brain injuries are not black and white. We have to just take this day by day. She has an incredible medical team taking care of her.”

Leanza was married to television personality Mark Steines from 1995-2013 and he shared a touching message about her on his Instagram.

“It is with a heavy heart that I share with you the passing of my ex-wife, Leanza the mother to our two extraordinary sons Kai and Avery,” he wrote with a sweet photo. “We will always remember the wonderful times shared during her short time here on earth.”

He added, “I find comfort knowing Kai and Avery will forever have the best guardian angel watching over them as they navigate life’s path. I ask that you please keep them as well as Leanza’s parents and her family in your prayers.”

Our thoughts are with Leanza‘s family and friends during this difficult time.

Camille Schrier is opening up about her experience as a newly crowned beauty queen.

The 24-year-old scientist from Virginia, who was named the winner of Miss America 2020 on Thursday night (December 19), revealed she never would have competed until the organization dropped the swimsuit portion of the competition this year.

“I think that a lot of women in our world really struggle with body image and have had things that might qualify as an eating disorder and they might not even recognize it. And as someone who has struggled with body image and body positivity throughout my life, I didn’t ever want to put myself in a situation to be judged on my body,” she explained to People.

“I don’t think that the number of abs I have necessarily defined how healthy I am,” she continued.

“I think that being able to focus more on what I have to offer with my confidence and my public speaking and my intelligence is a lot more meaningful to me, and something that I wanted to focus on. And so I just chose not to compete until that was gone,” she went on to reveal.

READ MORE: Who Won Miss America? 2020 Winner Announced!

The 2020 Miss America special just aired and the next Miss America was just crowned!

The competition was held on Thursday (December 19) at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Connecticut. The broadcast marked the first beauty pageant to be aired on NBC since the network cut ties with the Miss Universe Organization over Donald Trump‘s remarks during his presidential campaign.

Here’s how the scoring worked for the competition: 25% of the score was their score from the preliminary competition, 25% of the score was from the on-stage interview, 30% of the score was from the talent competition, and 20% of the score was from the social impact pitch.

The Top 15 this year were Alabama, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Kansas, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Texas, and Virginia.

Click inside to find out who won… More Here! »

The Miss America 2020 special will be airing TONIGHT (December 19) and we have all the info you need about the show’s judges and hosts.

51 contestants will be competing to be crowned Miss America during the event, which is billed as a scholarship competition.

Nia Franklin, who won the event last year, will appear at the end of the broadcast to crown the new winner. She has been promoting her social impact initiative “Advocating for the Arts” throughout the past year.

You can catch the special on NBC at 8/7c!

Click through the slideshow to meet the Miss America stars…

The 2019 Miss America pageant took place on Sunday (September 9) and a new woman was given the crown!

Miss New York Nia Imani Franklin received the crown as North Dakota’s Cara Mund ended her run as Miss America.

“It took a lot of perseverance to get here and I just want to thank my beautiful family,” Nia said.

This year’s pageant was historic as the swimsuit portion was eliminated and the Miss America Organization announced that “candidates will no longer be judged on outward appearance. The choice of wardrobe is now open so everyone can express their own very individual style.”

Congrats to Nia on the big accomplishment!

Miss Michigan Emily Sioma is using her platform to raise awareness for an important issue.

While introducing herself in the beginning of the 2019 Miss America competition hosted at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, New Jersey on Sunday (September 9), the Michigan resident spoke out about the ongoing crisis.

“From the state with 84 percent of the U.S. fresh water, but none for its residents to drink, I am Miss Michigan Emily Sioma,” she declared, causing an instant shock across social media.

Emily did not advance to the Top 15 despite her opening remark.

The Flint water crisis began in 2014 when drinking sources were changed in Flint, Michigan. Lead from the lead pipes was exposed to over 100,000 residents, and a federal state of emergency was declared in 2016. To date, while testing has shown water levels to be safe, residents are still instructed to use bottled or filtered water until all of the lead pipes are replaced in 2020.

Watch the moment here.

The Miss America organization has announced a big change: the swimsuit competition is being removed entirely and women will no longer be judged based on physical appearance.

“We’ve heard from a lot of young women who say, ‘We’d love to be a part of your program but we don’t want to be out there in high heels and a swimsuit,’ so guess what, you don’t have to do that anymore. Who doesn’t want to be empowered, learn leadership skills and pay for college and be able to show the world who you are as a person from the inside of your soul,” Miss America Organization chair of the Board of Trustees Gretchen Carlson said in a statement. “That’s what we’re judging them on now.”

“We are now open, inclusive and transparent and I want to inspire thousands of young people across this country to come and be a part of our program,” Gretchen continued. “We want you and we want to celebrate your accomplishments and your talents and then we want to hand you scholarships.”