Kseniya Alexandrova, who represented Russia in the 2017 Miss Universe pageant, has died at the age of 30 after a car collision with an elk.
The model’s husband, Ilya, told Russian news source RIA Novosti that the couple were returning from the town of Rzhev in the Tver Oblast region on July 5 when they struck the animal along the nation’s sprawling M9 highway.
Ilya was behind the wheel, while Alexandrova sat in the passenger seat.
“An elk jumped out from somewhere, jumped out in front of the car,” he shared in an interview translated from Russian. “From the moment it jumped out until the impact, a split second passed. I did not have time to do anything. The elk flew into the car. The blow hit [Alexandrova] in the head. She was unconscious, her head was broken, everything was covered in blood.”
Kseniya Alexandrova/Instagram
Alexandrova sustained severe injuries to her brain from the accident, eventually succumbing on Aug. 12 after days spent in a coma, according to the Russian news outlet, which first reported the news of her death on Thursday.
Ilya noted that the couple were both wearing seatbelts, and he was driving at a low speed when the elk jumped in front of the car. The airbags did not deploy, but several other drivers along the M9 stopped to aid the couple when they saw the crash. An ambulance shortly thereafter transferred Alexandrova to the nearby Sklifosovsky Institute for Emergency Medicine in Moscow.
Alexandrova’s modeling agency, Modus Vivendis, mourned her passing on Wednesday in an Instagram post.
“Kseniya was vibrant, talented, and exceptionally bright. She knew how to inspire, support, and give warmth to everyone around her. For us, she will forever remain a symbol of beauty, kindness, and inner strength,” the caption read, according to a translation.
The model represented her home country in the 2017 Miss Universe pageant, which saw Demi-Leigh Nel-Peters of South Africa crowned as the winner. Beyond modeling, Alexandrova was also a practicing psychologist, sharing in a 2022 Instagram update that she’d earned her degree from the Moscow Pedagogical State University.
Want more movie news? Sign up for Entertainment Weekly‘s free newsletter to get the latest trailers, celebrity interviews, film reviews, and more.
Alexandrova and Ilya were married in March.
The former beauty queen shared a series of photos depicting their lavish wedding to her Instagram on April 2.
“I never thought that one event could resonate inside me for so long,” she wrote in the caption, according to a translation. “I remember every second, and it feels like I’m still experiencing that whirlwind of emotions.”
