Did Jacqui from MAFS Australia really win Miss New Zealand?

13 March 2025, 17:15

Did MAFS Australia's Jacqui really win Miss New Zealand? Picture: Nine/Instagram

By Jenny Medlicott

Jacqui introduced herself on MAFS Australia as a model and former winner of beauty pageant contest Miss New Zealand, but did she really win the competition?

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With Married at First Sight Australia 2025 in full swing, we’ve already seen serious drama, gossip and uncomfortable altercations between some of the show’s feistiest characters.

Among these feisty characters is 29-year-old Kiwi Jacqui, who was matched up with husband Ryan.

Jacqui, a consultant from New Zealand, listed off a raft of impressive achievements during her introduction on the show, as they're clearly something she wears with a badge of pride.

“It’s impossible to find someone on my level," she said during her introduction. "I’m too ambitious, I’m too much to handle, I work on myself everyday, I’m highly intelligent, I’ve read over 2,000 books, I have a double degree with first class honours in law."

And the list certainly didn’t stop there, as she also revealed that she was once Miss New Zealand in 2012, the crowning title in a national beauty pageant.

But did Jacqui really win the title of Miss New Zealand in 2012? Here's what we know...

Read more: MAFS Australia's Adrian responds to domestic violence allegations

Jacqui shared a photo from what looks like a beauty pageant that was held in Sanya, China. Picture: Instagram

Did Jacqui really win Miss New Zealand?

While Miss New Zealand is undoubtedly an impressive accolade in the beauty pageant world, a number of fans have cast doubts on whether she really scooped the prize following some internet sleuthing.

And it turns out they were right to have their suspicions, as Jacqui didn’t actually win Miss New Zealand. The real Miss New Zealand in 2012 was Avianca Böhm.

Instead, Jacqui repped the country in a different competition called Miss Yacht International.

Miss Yacht International was a competition founded by a Chinese company, but it was cancelled two years after its launch in 2011, according to The Tab.

The competition website said: “Miss Yacht Model International is a pageant which combines a yachting lifestyle with international beauties and focuses on spreading this lifestyle to the rest of the world.”

Jacqui's Instagram does have an old pic of her at what looks like the yacht beauty competition, but contrary to her claims, it seems like she didn't win it.

The competition was actually won by a lady named Macedonia, with Serbia and Belarus as runners-up.

Naturally, the revelation has left fans wondering why Jacqui claimed she was Miss New Zealand, but for now, she's yet to address it.

Since leaving, Jacqui has been pretty forthcoming about her experience on the MAFS experiment, including recently when she revealed the 'reality' of filming during the show's dinner parties.

So while she might not have addressed the Miss New Zealand controversy yet, it's possible that could change.