Miss America Is Removing Swimsuit Competition, Will No Longer Judge on Physical Appearance

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.”