The 2018 Miss Teen USA airs online live via the official Miss USA Facebook page. The final competition for Miss Teen USA begins on Friday, May 18, 2018 at 2 p.m. PT/4 p.m. CT/5 p.m. ET, according to the official Miss USA website, while the preliminary pageant aired on May 16, 2018. The final pageant is taking place at George’s Pond at Hirsch Coliseum, the same venue where the Miss Teen USA 2018 preliminary competition is held. In addition, the 2018 Miss USA Pageant will be held there live on Monday night, May 21, 2018, at 8 p.m. ET/7 p.m. CT, airing on the Fox network.
For the Miss Teen USA pageant, the contestants will compete in athletic wear, evening wear and a final question throughout the evening. The hosts of the event this year are Erin Lim and Cecilio Asuncion. Lim is recognizable from the E! network, as well as E! Entertainment’s Snapchat show, The Rundown. Asuncion, on the other hand, is a powerhouse in fashion, known for the reality show STRUT, along with being the founder and director of Slay Model Management, which is the world’s first all-transgender model agency, according to Miss Universe. When it comes to the judges, aka the selection committee, they include sports journalist Ashley Fox, news reporter Bia Roldan, Miss Louisiana USA 2003 Brittney Rogers Collins, Miss USA 2008 Crystle Stewart Sebrechts, Dance Moms star Kalani Hilliker, and Marta Topran, the beauty director at Seventeen, Cosmopolitan and Women’s Health magazines.
A total of 51 contestants from 50 states, as well as the District of Columbia, are competing. The contestants are aged 14 to 19 and the current Miss Teen USA is Sophia Dominquez- Heithoff, according to Ark Latex Homepage. And, if you would like to watch the competition as it airs live, you can find it streaming on the Miss USA Facebook page at show time.
So, how did the preliminary competition go? Fans will just have to wait and see which contestants impressed the most to make it into the semi-finalists.
This is the first year that the Miss Teen USA comes immediately before the Miss USA competition. Kára McCullough of District of Columbia will be relinquishing her crown on Monday night, with Vanessa and Nick Lachey as the show hosts. The winner will then represent the United States at the next Miss Universe pageant. This year’s selection committee for Miss USA includes Miss Washington USA 2000 Jamie Kern Lima, Miss Oregon USA 1994 Denise White, Today Show contributor Lilliana Vazquez, Miss USA 2008 Crystle Stewart (who is also judging Miss Teen USA), and Miss Washington USA 1998 Natasha Curry.
According to the Shreveport Times, the Miss USA and Miss Teen USA contestants were welcomed to their host city this year, with a Mardi Gras-themed celebration. It is the 20th anniversary since the pageants were first held in Shreveport-Bossier City. The Mardi Gras in May Parade was held on May 14, 2018 and celebrated all 102 competitors pageant queens. The 2017 reigning winners Miss USA Kára McCullough and Miss Teen USA Sophia Dominguez-Heithoff were also in tow. Town officials, along with Booker T. Washington High School and Parkway High School marching bands, also assisted with the festivities.