Miss Nevada-Nia Sanchez, who has a fourth-degree black belt in taekwondo, won the title of Miss USA 2014 in Baton Rouge.

Nia Sanchez, twenty four, of Las Vegas looked stunning in a red fishtail gown as she was crowned the new Miss USA. Miss North-Dakota Audra Mari, was declared the first runner-up.

Other runners-up in the pageant included Miss Georgia-Tiana Griggs, Miss Louisiana- Brittany Guidry, Miss Florida-Brittany Oldehoff and Miss Iowa-Carlyn Bradarich.

As the winner of the 63rd Miss USA Pageant, Nia Sanchez will move on to the Miss Universe 2014 Pageant later this year.

When asked about the security detail guarding the pageant contestants, Nia Sanchez said her black belt gave her a sense of security and self-confidence, but added that she didn’t mind having the guards on hand.

The pageant queen, who works as a full-time model, referenced her martial arts knowledge in two interviews during Sunday night’s televised competition.

Nia Sanchez was asked by Rumer Willis about a statistic that says nineteen percent of female college students in the US are sexually assaulted, why universities may try to hide the issue and what can be done to fix the problem.

“I believe that some colleges may potentially be afraid of having a bad reputation and that would be a reason it could be swept under the rug, because they don’t want that to come out in public. More awareness is very important so women can learn how to protect themselves. Myself, as a fourth-degree black belt, I learned at a young age that you need to be confident and be able to defend yourself. And I think that’s something we should really implement for a lot of women.” pat came the reply from Nia Sanchez

Contestants came from all fifty states as well as the District of Columbia. They were judged on their performances in the evening gown and swimsuit rounds, as well as personal interviews.

Miss USA Pageant is owned by Donald Trump.