ATLANTA, GA – July 28, 2016 — Fort Lauderdale Hooters Girl, Sable Robbert, claimed top honors at the 20th Annual Hooters International Swimsuit Pageant held at Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas, taking home the coveted 2016 Miss Hooters International title. Sable was selected from a field of 80 of the most outstanding Hooters Girls from around the world at the glamorous event.
Hooters fans can experience the Pageant in full virtual reality on the Hooters YouTube channel. Recorded using the hottest new 360-degree video technology, Hooters interactive Pageant video transports viewers to one of the biggest Hooters events of the year. Watch it on a virtual reality headset to take your experience to the next level!
Virtual reality is just one way that fans can be a part of the action this year. Thousands tuned in to Facebook LIVE to watch Sable and her sister Hooters Girls represent their hometowns in the 20th Annual Hooters International Swimsuit Pageant Preview event held each year on the night preceding the formal pageant event. You can still be a part of the fun by visiting facebook.com/hooters and clicking on “videos” to watch live recordings from Pageant Preview.
As confetti showered over the Hooters Girl contestants at the culmination of the annual competition, Sable was crowned and her reign began. An enthusiastic 26-year-old, Sable has worked at the Hooters of Fort Lauderdale for five years. She is no stranger to previous Hooters Pageant success, having finished fourth runner up in 2014, and among the top 10 winners last year.
Sable is a passionate animal lover and an avid outdoors and fitness enthusiast. Having traveled the world and modeled for the past four Hooters calendars, she loves to represent the iconic Hooters brand. The energetic Floridian will now be given the opportunity to contribute to Hooters marketing initiatives and assist with international openings and special events throughout the year – something she has always dreamed of.
“It hasn’t really sunk in yet that I’m being given the honor of serving as brand ambassador for Hooters,” said Sable. “The entire Pageant experience has been unreal, and I’m thankful for my close-knit Hooters family. I’m ecstatic to have so many exciting opportunities with Hooters on the horizon, and to join a select group of women who’ve served as the face of the iconic brand before me.”
Sable and her fellow contestants were evaluated based on responses to interview questions, personality and overall contribution to the growing Hooters brand, as well as swimsuit attire. They were selected from a pool of more than 18,000 Hooters Girls who presently work in one of the more than 420 Hooters locations worldwide. The Hooters International Swimsuit Pageant is the culmination of local and regional swimsuit contests along “The Road to Vegas.”
A six-person panel of judges included Lynn Austin, the original Hooters Girl; Rich Davis, host of Convino & Rich on Sirius XM RUSH; Forrest Griffin, Ultimate Fighter coach and legend; Adam Hygema, Invictus Games gold-medalist and Navy veteran; Steel Lafferty, wakeboarding rising star; and Bonnie-Jill Laflin, first and only female NBA scout and former NFL cheerleader.
The top five Hooters Girl finalists are first runner up, Hannah Williams, Hooters of Irving, Texas; second runner up, Assiatou Barry, Hooters of Manhattan; third runner up, Chelsea Morgensen, Hooters of Hollywood, California; and fourth runner up, Caitlyn Efel, Hooters of Kennesaw, Georgia.
Rounding out the top 10 in alphabetical order are Amberly Hall, Hooters of Miami, Florida; Kammie Hall, Hooters of Tulsa, Oklahoma; Victoria Rachoza, Hooters of Tampa, Florida; Rachel Swartz, Hooters of Columbus, Georgia; and Ashton Scott, Hooters of Clearwater, Florida.
Additional awards went to Megan Pugh, Hooters of Winnipeg, Canada, who was voted Miss World;
Hannah Williams, Hooters of Irving, Texas, who was voted Miss Photogenic; Rachel Swartz, Hooters of Columbus, Georgia, who was voted Miss Congeniality; and Haley Sirmans, Hooters of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, who was voted Miss Fan Favorite.
In addition to hosting the Pageant, Palms Casino Resort is also home to the world’s largest Hooters, located alongside the Palms Pool.
Earlier in the week on Monday, July 11, the Palms vibrant poolside was the scene of the fifth annual Hooters Worldwide Wing Eating Championship, an officially sanctioned Major League Eating event. Longtime professional eating veteran, Joey “Jaws” Chestnut reclaimed the coveted world title by devouring 194 Hooters world-famous chicken wings in 10 minutes, proving his dominance in professional eating. This victory made it his fourth time to win the prestigious competition.
You can still catch the action by visiting facebook.com/hooters and clicking on “videos” to watch a live recording of the championship wing eating event.
For more information from this year’s Hooters International Swimsuit Pageant, visit Pageant.Hooters.com. Hooters fans can also enjoy ongoing Pageant content by following on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.