The controversy surrounding former Miss Grand Trinidad and Tobago Venezuelan Mileidy Materano continues as the pageant organizers have refuted claims made by Materano and her team. Stolen Productions Ltd (SPL) has denied claims it reneged on a promise to fund former Miss Grand Trinidad and Tobago Venezuelan Mileidy Materano, and yesterday blamed “public controversy” for sponsorship issues. A media release issued by franchise holders for Miss Grand Trinidad and Tobago, and SPL’s managing director denied claims by Materano’s lawyers at a recent press conference, that she’d been told within 72 hours of resigning that she would have to fund her way to the international pageant in Vietnam, on October 25, 2023.
The release from SPL’s managing director said that the organizers were: “shocked and disappointed” by Materano’s sudden resignation on Wednesday. They reiterated: “We wish to state that we did not force Ms. Materano to resign and this decision was taken by her solely.” SPL has since passed on the crown to first runner-up Rebekah Hislop.
SPL’s managing director also said: “We, at SPL, pride ourselves with respect, transparency, approachability, and support for our delegates in their pursuit of representing Trinidad and Tobago in an international arena. The release went on to explain: “On the 10th September 2023, in a landmark decision by our pageant judges, Ms Materano was crowned Miss Grand Trinidad and Tobago 2023 and we at SPL, were proud to be able to facilitate this opportunity for Ms Materano. “Following Ms Materano’s appointment, we were met with a series of controversies with respect to whether Ms Materano was fit to represent Trinidad and Tobago at the Miss Grand International 2023 Pageant. Despite this, SPL remained resolute in her representation.”
The pageant company confirmed that the public backlash against Ms. Materano negatively impacted their corporate sponsorship, however, this did not detract from SPL’s commitment to send Ms. Materano to Vietnam to compete at the Miss Grand International 2023 Pageant as promised.