Drita Ziri (born 26 May 2005) is an Albanian beauty pageant titleholder who was crowned
Miss Earth 2023. She is the first Albanian to win the
Miss Earth title and to win one of the
Big Four international beauty pageants.[3] Winning the title at age 18, she is the youngest entrant to win the pageant.
Life and career
Ziri was born on 26 May 2005,[4] and raised in
Fushë-Krujë, Albania. Her father, Blerim Ziri, is a well-known referee for the
Albanian Football Federation.[5] At the age of 3, she began
ballet dancing in
Tirana but had to abandon it later due to an injury. She has also expressed her interest and involvement in acting, sports, contemporary dance, modeling, foreign languages, and science.[6] She is currently a
tourism management student and speaks Albanian, English, Italian, French, and Spanish fluently.[7]
In 2023, Ziri hosted the Miss Globe 2023 pageant[8] and Netët e Klipit Shqiptar (Nights of the Albanian Clip), both produced by the Deliart Association.
Pageantry
Miss Shqipëria 2022
Ziri participated in, and won
Miss Shqipëria 2022, on 3 July 2022, in
Himarë, Albania. She was crowned by the outgoing queen, Anxhela Peristeri, earning her the right to represent Albania at
Miss Globe 2022.[9]
The Miss Globe 2022
Ziri competed in Miss Globe 2022 on 21 October 2022, in
Tirana, Albania reaching second runner-up. She also won Miss Bikini and Miss Photogenic, by public vote.[10]
Ziri was appointed as Miss Earth Albania 2023 by the Deliart Association. She represented her country at Miss Earth 2023 and won, on 22 December 2023, in Van Phuc City, Thủ Đức, Vietnam. She was crowned by the outgoing
Miss Earth 2022,
Mina Sue Choi from South Korea.[11][12] Ziri is the first Albanian to win the title, as well as the first to win one of the Big Four international beauty pageants.[13][14] Winning the pageant at age 18, she became the youngest contestant to win the pageant, surpassing the inaugural titleholder
Catharina Svensson from Denmark, who won in
2001 at the age of 19.[15]