FRANCE — Is a woman with long hair deemed more beautiful and desirable? 

The debate over beauty standards of women have come to the fore after a contestant with a pixie cut was crowned as the new Miss France.

Ms Eve Gilles made waves on Saturday (Dec 16) by being the first-ever contestant with short hair to win the title of Miss France in the pageant's 103-year history.

The aspiring statistician was crowned in front of a massive audience of 7.5 million television viewers.

Ms Gilles’ win, however, has sparked a surprising backlash against the nation’s top beauty pageant, with online critics accusing its judges of going “woke” for selecting a winner that they claim “doesn't look anything like a Miss France”.

Ms Gilles has reportedly been harshly criticised for her "absence of curves", her thinness and her short hair, according to French media.

Woke is a slang word typically used to describe individuals who are aware of social problems and injustices, such as racism and inequality. However, the term is also used by some conservatives in a disparaging way.

Over the weekend, the hashtag #MissFrance2024 trended on X (formerly Twitter) as many online users took to the social media platform to voice their opinions on the results.

Ms Gilles’ Instagram account also received a flood of negative comments.

One X user wrote: “In a stunning turn of events, the newly crowned Miss France has short hair!? It’s the woke ideology trying to force masculine-looking women upon us. Can society get more ridiculous?”

Another critic proclaimed: “Miss France is no longer a beauty contest but a woke contest which is based on inclusiveness.”

The sentiment was echoed by some other X users who accused Ms Gilles of “instilling wokeist values” into society, British tabloid The Daily Mail reported.

A handful of netizens even made fun of her appearance by calling her “anorexic” and “transgender”.

However, the negative comments were drowned out by a surge of support for Ms Gilles, with many people including French politicians, congratulating her on the historic win. 

One fan wrote: “Maybe the new #MissFrance isn't gorgeous in your eyes, but seeing wokeism in her because she has short hair... It's just ridiculous.”

Another user pointed out: “Eve Gilles isn't even trans, has never claimed to be trans, but half of the comments about her are transphobic because she has short hair.” 

An Instagram user said: “Very beautiful woman who represents modern femininity… She will forever remain the first Miss (France) with short hair and I am proud of it.”

French Member of Parliament Sandrine Rousseau also chimed in, writing: “I'm shocked by the comments on #MissFrance2024. Our hair and what we do with it, how we style it, is none of men's business.”

Ms Marine Le Pen, who ran for the French presidency last year, also congratulated Ms Gilles on her victory.

Seemingly aware that her appearance would make a statement, Ms Gilles had reportedly said during the final on Saturday: “I would like to show that the competition is evolving and society too, that the representation of women is diverse. In my opinion, beauty is not limited to a haircut or curves that we have… Or not. 

“No one should dictate who you are… Every woman is different, we’re all unique,” she added.

Ms Gilles, who is studying mathematics and statistics at Lille University, was representing the northern Nord-Pas-de-Calais region of France.

The pageant’s winner was selected through a combination of public voting and a jury decision. Although Ms Gilles ranked third in the public vote, the panel of judges elevated her to the top position.