Iris Mittenaere Gay Rumors Swirl After Miss Universe’s Instagram Page Show’s Apparent Girlfriend

Netizens are questioning the sexuality of Miss Universe Iris Mittenaere after Instagram photos seemingly showed she had a girlfriend. Mittenaere has not responded to the rumors, which ran rampant on Twitter after she was crowned Sunday.

Latin Times was one of the first publications to uncover the gossip. If Mittenaere were a lesbian, she would be the first openly gay holder of the Miss Universe title. While it would have little to do with her crown, an openly gay Miss Universe could have a positive impact on the LGBTQ community. The response from Twitter was overwhelmingly positive.

The speculation started after people browsed through Mittenaere’s Instagram photos. They found pictures of the 24-year-old with fellow beauty queen Camille Cerf. Cerf, 22, is a French businesswoman who was crowned Miss France December 2014. She represented her country in Miss Universe 2014.

In a photo from March, Mittenaere and her supposed girlfriend posed together in the Dominican Republic. Her caption is roughly translated from French: “I found the sun in 20 days with the most beautiful, for my journey of integration! I cannot wait to go back with my kitten.”

In a photo from Feburary last year, the women braided their hair together and Mittenaere held her possible lover from behind. “Because some stories seem obvious,” the caption read.

Instead of confronting the gossip, Mittenaere promoted her Sunday win on Twitter and Instagram. “Beauty, grace, confidence, intelligence. Those are the qualities embodied by your 65th #MissUniverse, Iris Mittenaere,” the Miss Universe picture wrote about the French winner Sunday. “Shining brighter than gold. This is your #MissUniverse.”

Mittenaere is a native of little town near Paris. She has been working toward her dental degree for the past five years. The new Miss Universe likes to cook French dishes, travel the world and participate in extreme sports. When Mittenaere was asked to describe herself, she said she was funny, fresh and caring. The beauty queen does volunteer work at Bienvenue-Tongasoa and Les Bonnes Fées.

Follow me on Twitter @mariamzzarella