Eve Gilles (born 9 July 2003) is a French beauty pageant titleholder who was crowned

Miss France 2024 Miss France 2024 was the 94th edition of the Miss France pageant, held at the Zénith de Dijon in Dijon, France, on 16 December 2023. Indira Ampiot of Guadeloupe crowned Eve Gilles of Nord Pas-de-Calais as her successor at the end of the event ...

. She had previously been crowned Miss Nord-Pas-de-Calais 2023 and is the fourth woman from

Nord-Pas-de-Calais Nord-Pas-de-Calais (; ; West Flemish: ''Nôord-Nauw van Kales'') was a former regions of France, administrative region of France. Since 1 January 2016, it has been part of the new Regions of France, region Hauts-de-France. It consisted of the ...

to win

Miss France Miss France is a national beauty pageant in France held annually in December. The competition was first held in 1920, and has been organized continuously since 1947. The trademark for the pageant is owned by the company Miss France SAS, and is ...

. Due to her

pixie cut A pixie cut is a short hairstyle, generally short on the back and sides of the head and slightly longer on the top, with very short bangs. It is a variant of a crop. The name is derived from the mythological pixie. History The pixie cut was firs ...

, Gilles was also cited by the French media as the first woman with short hair to become Miss France.

Early life and education

Gilles was born in

Dunkirk Dunkirk ( ; ; ; Picard language, Picard: ''Dunkèke''; ; or ) is a major port city in the Departments of France, department of Nord (French department), Nord in northern France. It lies from the Belgium, Belgian border. It has the third-larg ...

to parents Bruno and Édith Gilles (

née The birth name is the name of the person given upon their birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name or to the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a births registe ...

Calapin-Latchoumy), and was raised in the town of Quaëdypre in the

Nord Nord, a word meaning "north" in several European languages, may refer to: Acronyms * National Organization for Rare Disorders, an American nonprofit organization * New Orleans Recreation Department, New Orleans, Louisiana, US Film and televisi ...

department. Her father is a French

land surveyor Surveying or land surveying is the technique, profession, art, and science of determining the terrestrial two-dimensional or three-dimensional positions of points and the distances and angles between them. These points are usually on the ...

, while her mother works as his secretary and comes from the town of Sainte-Marie in

Réunion Réunion (; ; ; known as before 1848) is an island in the Indian Ocean that is an overseas departments and regions of France, overseas department and region of France. Part of the Mascarene Islands, it is located approximately east of the isl ...

, with

Tamil Tamil may refer to: People, culture and language * Tamils, an ethno-linguistic group native to India, Sri Lanka, and some other parts of Asia **Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka ** Myanmar or Burmese Tamils, Tamil people of Ind ...

Indian Indian or Indians may refer to: Associated with India * of or related to India ** Indian people ** Indian diaspora ** Languages of India ** Indian English, a dialect of the English language ** Indian cuisine Associated with indigenous peoples o ...

ancestry originating from the

Malabar Coast The Malabar Coast () is the southwestern region of the Indian subcontinent. It generally refers to the West Coast of India, western coastline of India stretching from Konkan to Kanyakumari. Geographically, it comprises one of the wettest regio ...

. Gilles is the youngest of three daughters, with elder sisters Lisa and Lucie. In her youth, Gilles was active in a variety of activities, such as dance, athletics, and

equitation Equitation is the art or practice of horse riding or horsemanship. More specifically, equitation may refer to a rider's position while mounted, and encompasses a rider's ability to ride correctly and with effective aids. In horse show competitio ...

, and had been elected as a class representative throughout her education. At age 14, Gilles was diagnosed with the neurological condition

paroxysmal dyskinesia The paroxysmal dyskinesias (PD) are a group of movement disorders characterized by attacks (paroxysms) of hyperkinesia (excessive restlessness) with intact consciousness. Paroxysmal dyskinesia is a rare disorder, however the number of individuals ...

, and she did not publicly reveal her diagnosis until October 2024. Gilles was educated at Lycée Jean-Bart in Dunkirk, where she aspired to become a

neurologist Neurology (from , "string, nerve" and the suffix -logia, "study of") is the branch of medicine dealing with the diagnosis and treatment of all categories of conditions and disease involving the nervous system, which comprises the brain, the ...

and graduated with her ''

baccalauréat The ''baccalauréat'' (; ), often known in France colloquially as the ''bac'', is a French national academic qualification that students can obtain at the completion of their secondary education (at the end of the ''lycée'') by meeting certain ...

'' with '' mention très bien'' honors in 2021. Prior to becoming Miss France, Gilles was a student at the

University of Lille The University of Lille (, abbreviated as ULille, UDL or univ-lille) is a French public research university based in Lille, Hauts-de-France. It has its origins in the University of Douai (1559), and resulted from the merger of three universities ...

, studying mathematics and

computer science Computer science is the study of computation, information, and automation. Computer science spans Theoretical computer science, theoretical disciplines (such as algorithms, theory of computation, and information theory) to Applied science, ...

with the career aspiration of becoming a

statistician A statistician is a person who works with Theory, theoretical or applied statistics. The profession exists in both the private sector, private and public sectors. It is common to combine statistical knowledge with expertise in other subjects, a ...

. She had previously completed one semester of medical studies, but did not return after deciding that she no longer wished to pursue the medical field. After ending her medical studies, Gilles spent one semester working at an egg factory in

Wormhout Wormhout (; before 1975: ''Wormhoudt''; ) is a commune in the Nord department in northern France. Several people in Wormhout still speak West Flemish, a local dialect of Dutch and the traditional language of the region, while French-speaker ...

, before returning to school as a mathematics and computer science student.

Pageantry

Miss Nord-Pas-de-Calais 2023

Gilles began her career in pageantry after signing up to compete in the local Miss Hersin-Coupigny 2023 pageant. She had aspired to become Miss France since her childhood, but was encouraged by her maternal grandfather to finally sign up to compete in a qualifying pageant. When she first attempted to register for the pageant, she was measured to stand at , shorter than the height requirement of , and was prevented from participating until later reaching the height requirement through

stretching Stretching is a form of physical exercise in which a specific muscle or tendon (or muscle group) is deliberately expanded and flexed in order to improve the muscle's felt elasticity and achieve comfortable muscle tone. The result is a feelin ...

. The final was held in April 2023, which Gilles went on to win. As Miss Hersin-Coupigny 2023, Gilles qualified to compete in Miss Nord-Pas-de-Calais 2023. Gilles later competed in Miss Nord-Pas-de-Calais 2023 in October 2023 at the

Arena Stade Couvert de Liévin (formerly ) is an indoor arena in Liévin, France. Construction began in 1982. The arena is primarily used for indoor athletics with a capacity up to 6,000 people and for concerts. The arena is part of a complex that also includes an amphitheat ...

Liévin Liévin (; ; ) is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in northern France. The inhabitants are called ''Liévinois'' in French. Overview The town of Liévin is an old mining area of Pas-de-Calais. Near Lens, this town is of modest size but ...

, where she went on to win the title. As Miss Nord-Pas-de-Calais 2023, she represented the region at

. She later crowned Sabah Aib as her successor at Miss Nord-Pas-de-Calais 2024 in October 2024.

Miss France 2024

Miss France 2024 was held on 16 December 2023 at the

Zénith de Dijon The zenith is the point in the sky that appears directly above the observer. Zenith or Zénith may also refer to: *Summit, a point on a surface that is higher in elevation than all points immediately adjacent to it Automotive * Zenith Carburett ...

Dijon Dijon (, ; ; in Burgundian language (Oïl), Burgundian: ''Digion'') is a city in and the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Côte-d'Or Departments of France, department and of the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté Regions of France, region in eas ...

. Gilles competed in the finals, where she advanced to the top fifteen and later the top five. At the end of the pageant, Gilles was declared the winner, being crowned by outgoing titleholder

Indira Ampiot Indira Ampiot (born 19 September 2004) is a French beauty pageant titleholder who was crowned Miss France 2023. She had previously been crowned Miss Guadeloupe, Miss Guadeloupe 2022 and Miss Basse-Terre 2022 and is the fourth woman from Guadeloup ...

Guadeloupe Guadeloupe is an Overseas departments and regions of France, overseas department and region of France in the Caribbean. It consists of six inhabited islands—Basse-Terre Island, Basse-Terre, Grande-Terre, Guadeloupe, Grande-Terre, Marie-Galant ...

, becoming the fourth woman from Nord-Pas-de-Calais to win the title. Her victory received media attention in France and internationally due to her

, with the French media dubbing Gilles as the first woman with short hair to be crowned Miss France. In the aftermath of the competition, Gilles was the victim of

cyberbullying Cyberbullying (cyberharassment or online bullying) is a form of bullying or harassment using electronic means. Since the 2000s, it has become increasingly common, especially among teenagers and adolescents, due to young people's increased u ...

in regards to her physical appearance, with a number of Internet users making negative comments about her hairstyle and body type. Following the criticism, Gilles was defended by a number of French public figures, including politicians

Sandrine Rousseau Sandrine Rousseau (; born 8 March 1972) is a French economist and politician who has represented the Paris's 9th constituency, 9th constituency of Paris in the National Assembly (France), National Assembly since 2022 French legislative election ...

and

Karima Delli Karima Delli (born 4 March 1979 in Roubaix, Nord) is a French politician and Member of the European Parliament elected in the 2009 European election, 2014 European elections and in the 2019 European elections for the Île-de-France constitu ...

. As Miss France, Gilles was awarded a number of prizes and rewards, including a multitude of gifts from sponsors, a year-long residence in a luxury

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

apartment, and an undisclosed monthly salary the equivalent of a

senior executive Corporate titles or business titles are given to corporate officers to show what duties and responsibilities they have in the organization. Such titles are used by publicly and privately held for-profit corporations, cooperatives, non-profit org ...

in France. After winning the title, Gilles was given the opportunity to appear at a variety of events both in France and internationally. She appeared as a guest in season 11 of ''

Star Academy ''Star Academy'' is a Dutch-developed reality television talent show format that first aired in the Netherlands as '':nl:Starmaker (televisieprogramma), Star Maker''. Format There are many versions of the show, each country having its own sl ...

'' and at 2024 Series Mania, the

2024 Cannes Film Festival The 77th annual Cannes Film Festival took place from 14 to 25 May 2024. American filmmaker and actress Greta Gerwig served as jury president for the main competition. American filmmaker Sean Baker (filmmaker), Sean Baker won the Palme d'Or, the ...

, the

2024 French Open The 2024 French Open was a major tennis tournament that was played on outdoor clay courts. It was held at the Stade Roland Garros in Paris, France, from 26 May to 9 June 2024, comprising singles, doubles and mixed doubles play. Junior and wheelcha ...

, and the 2024 Monte-Carlo Television Festival. Gilles also modeled in

Barcelona Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...

as the face of

Festina image:Festina F16184 4.jpg, Festina F16184 Festina is a Spanish watch conglomerate. In 1985, businessman Miguel Rodríguez acquired Festina, a brand founded in Switzerland in 1902, thus forming the ''Festina-Lotus Group.'' History Festina w ...

and walked for

Pierre Cardin Pierre Cardin (born Pietro Costante Cardin; 2 July 1922 – 29 December 2020) was an Italian-born naturalised-French fashion designer. He is known for what were his avant-garde style and Space Age designs. He preferred geometry, geometric shap ...

Paris Fashion Week Paris Fashion Week (, commonly ) is a series of designer presentations held semi-annually in Paris, France, with spring/summer and autumn/winter events held each year. Dates are determined by the Fédération de la Haute Couture et de la Mode. Pa ...

. In December 2023, it was announced that Gilles would participate in the torch relay for the

2024 Summer Olympics The 2024 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXXIII Olympiad () and branded as Paris 2024, were an international multi-sport event held in France from 26 July to 11 August 2024, with several events started from 24 July. P ...

; she later participated in the relay in July 2024 in

Lille Lille (, ; ; ; ; ) is a city in the northern part of France, within French Flanders. Positioned along the Deûle river, near France's border with Belgium, it is the capital of the Hauts-de-France Regions of France, region, the Prefectures in F ...

. In March 2024,

Gabriel Attal Gabriel Nissim Attal de Couriss (; born 16 March 1989) is a French politician who was the prime minister of France from January to September 2024. He was the youngest and the first openly Gay man, gay prime minister in French history. A member ...

designated Gilles as an ambassador of the

French government The Government of France (, ), officially the Government of the French Republic (, ), exercises Executive (government), executive power in France. It is composed of the Prime Minister of France, prime minister, who is the head of government, ...

for mathematics, in order to promote further education and careers in mathematics for young girls in honor of the International Day of Mathematics.

Post-pageantry

In December 2024, Gilles was announced as a celebrity contestant in season 14 of the French version of ''

Dancing with the Stars ''Strictly Come Dancing (widely known as Dancing with the Stars)'' is an international television franchise based on the format of the British TV series '' Strictly Come Dancing,'' itself a successor to the show ''Come Dancing'' (1950–1998) ...

''. In February 2025, it was revealed that Gilles would be partnered with professional dancer Nino Mosa during the competition. Gilles and Mosa finished in eighth place in the competition.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Gilles, Eve 2003 births French beauty pageant winners French female models French people of Indian descent French people of Réunion descent French people of Tamil descent Living people Miss France winners People from Dunkirk University of Lille Nord de France alumni Victims of cyberbullying