Gabrielle Henry, representing Jamaica in Miss Universe 2025, suffered serious injuries after falling from the stage during the preliminary evening gown round at the pageant held in Bangkok, Thailand, on November 19th.
The young woman, who is a doctor by profession, was immediately transferred to a hospital, where she remains under specialized observation.
A joint statement from the Miss Universe Organization (MUO) and Henry’s family confirmed the diagnosis.
“Dr. Henry suffered a serious fall through an opening in the stage while performing his walk during the preliminary competition, causing an intracranial hemorrhage with loss of consciousness, a fracture, facial lacerations and other significant injuries,” indicated the statement released this December 8th.
Since the accident, the contestant was admitted to intensive care in a hospital in the Thai capital, in critical condition and under constant neurological monitoring. According to the same statement, the Jamaican candidate “continues to require specialized supervision 24 hours a day”.
The organization also reported that Gabrielle Henry will soon return to her home country. “In the coming days she will be accompanied by a complete medical team and will be transferred directly to the hospital to continue her treatment and recovery process,” adds the document released.
The MUO highlighted that it had covered all of Henry’s medical, hospital, and rehabilitation expenses during his stay in Thailand.
In addition, he indicated that they covered the costs of accommodation and maintenance for the affected person’s mother and sister during their stay in the Asian country.
Furthermore, the organization will assume the financing of the medical repatriation flight and committed to cover any future expenses arising from this incident.
In the hours following the accident, images spread on social media showed Henry walking on the stage in an orange dress and heels when she completely fell off the stage. In other videos, the young woman can be seen being taken out of the venue on a stretcher.
Days later, the local organization Miss Universe Jamaica detailed in a statement that its representative was receiving medical attention and was not in mortal danger, although health professionals were still performing tests to ensure her full recovery.
The situation generated various reactions among the other contestants. Melissa Sapini, representative of Haiti, told People magazine that the pageant team gathered the candidates after the event and that a staff member had insinuated that the responsibility fell on Gabrielle Henry, pointing out that she “was not paying attention.”
“I don’t know if they handled that correctly. The first thing he said was that it was because she wasn’t paying attention,” Sapini expressed. Faced with these statements, the MUO publicly denied any accusations against Henry.
“Certain media reports suggesting that Dr. Henry influenced what happened are totally unfounded. The Miss Universe Organization has never attributed any responsibility to Dr. Henry and confirms that those statements do not reflect the facts,” the statement says.
The owner of Miss Universe, Raúl Rocha, also addressed the issue on his Instagram account.
“Thank God, our Miss Universe Jamaica is preparing to return home. To everyone who cared about her health, thank you very much for your support with prayers,” she stated.
Rocha also described as “cruel and insensitive” the versions spread about the supposed guilt of Gabrielle Henry, calling to transform these discourses into positive actions.
Henry’s family extended their gratitude “to the people of Jamaica, the Miss Universe community, and followers around the world for the expressions of affection, prayers, and encouragement.”
The 2025 edition of Miss Universe advanced amid other controversial episodes, such as the resignation of judges and the dismissal of executives, but Miss Jamaica’s accident was a critical point in the coverage of the pageant.
