Miss Universe wacky and racy national dress (+photos)

Miss Aruba, Miss Germany and Miss Venezuela wearing their national costumes. Photos / AP

The most jaw-dropping segment of the Miss Universe competition occurred last night, and while most tried to stand out from the crowd, our Miss New Zealand opted for tacky.

The contestants in the 63rd annual competition took part in the National Costume show at Florida International University in Miami.

The ladies wore an elaborate range of costumes spanning from the Buckingham Palace Queen's Guard to the national tree of Venezuela.

Miss Great Britain and Miss Jamaica in their national costumes. Photo / AP

There was no doubt that most of the contestants had gone to extreme lengths in their national dress, but Miss New Zealand opted for something understated yet awful.

Rachel Millns channelled her inner-mermaid in the shimmering aqua, full length gown, with a couple of cut-outs on bodice. We think she was going for an ocean/paua shell vibe, but overall the dress didn't hit the bizarre or the beautiful mark - most others attempted to tick at least one of these boxes.

Miss New Zealand, Rachel Millns. Photo / Miss Universe

But some of the outfits left the audience rather confused as to the link to the woman in question's home country.

One lady wore flags from across the entire world, not her own nation, while another appeared to be wearing just a simple ball gown.

Scroll down for a full gallery of wacky national dress costumes

Miss Korea in her national costume. Photo / AP

One contestant that left viewers in no doubt though, was Miss Canada, who came dressed as an ice hockey player, complete with working scoreboard.

Miss Canada in her national costume. Photo / AP

Check out a full gallery of the bizarre national dress

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- Daily Mail