(Victoria Oluwakotanmi. Photo by Vanguard News)
Victoria Oluwakotanmi, a Nigerian-American beauty queen, has earned popularity since earning the title of Miss Grand USA 2026.
Oluwakotanmi, who placed first runner-up in the August 10 Miss Grand USA final, took the title on Friday after the organization ended Mekayla Li’s tenure.
She will represent the United States at the Miss Grand International contest thanks to her new title, which puts her on a global scale.
Oluwakotanmi’s path to the throne, however, goes beyond pageantry; she has a background in education, youth empowerment, and the US Navy.
Oluwakotanmi, a Nigerian immigrant’s daughter who was born and reared in San Antonio, Texas, has openly discussed her Nigerian ancestry and her upbringing in a Nigerian-American household.
Oluwakotanmi served in the United States Navy Reserve before winning a pageant.
She enlisted in March 2019 as a Logistics Specialist and has been assigned to the Naval Operational Support Center San Antonio at Joint Base San Antonio-Fort Sam Houston.
Her military career has become an essential aspect of her public identification as a young Black woman who served in the United States military.
Oluwakotanmi started her pageant career at the Miss Black San Antonio competition in February 2020.
Her first competition required little of the rigorous preparation typically connected with beauty pageants.
She then won Miss Grand Illinois and competed in Miss Texas USA as an at-large contender.
Aside from pageantry and military service, Oluwakotanmi studied chemical engineering at Northwest Vista College while serving in the Navy.
Education has also been an essential aspect of her lobbying efforts.
In 2018, Oluwakotanmi and her family developed the Oluwakotanmi Promise, a scholarship and mentorship initiative named after her late grandmother.
According to Oluwakotanmi’s public statements, her grandmother was denied the right to attend college due to her gender.
The initiative was established to assist young people with education, mentoring, and other possibilities.
Oluwakotanmi has also provided updates on program participants, including members of the first cohort, who graduated from high school in 2026.
Her journey to the Miss Grand USA crown, however, took an unexpected detour.
Oluwakotanmi was not the first winner of the 2026 Miss Grand USA contest.
She finished as the first runner-up in the August 10 final, which Mekayla Li won.
However, once the Miss Grand USA organization ended Li’s reign and liberated her from the title and its responsibilities, Oluwakotanmi was promoted to Miss Grand USA 2026.
