She was one of the favorites.

But Thailand's Maria Poonlertlarp struggled during the Q&A portion of the Miss Universe pageant, which proved to have cost her the opportunity to end her country's title drought.

She finished in the Top 5, the closest a candidate from Thailand has come to winning the competition since 1988, when Phonthip Nakhirunkanok was crowned.

Last year, Chalita Suansane placed in the Top 6.

The lost chance led to Poonlertlarp, in her native language, tearfully addressing her fans via a Facebook video which was uploaded hours after the pageant concluded.

She expressed her disappointment over the result, but said that she's grateful that her fans are appreciative of her best efforts.

She also revealed that she'll be returning to Thailand after she visits the Philippines with some of the other candidates of Miss Universe 2017.

In the Q&A round, Poonlertlarp was asked a question about "the most important social movement" today. She ended up declaring that "the youth is the future."

Jamaica's Davina Bennett, Colombia's Laura Gonzalez, and South Africa's Demi-Leigh Nel-Peters all moved to the Top 3, with Del-Peters eventually winning over the two.

Poonlertlarp's Top 5 finish is still the highest from any country from the Asia-Pacific this year, with the Philippines' Rachel Peters bowing out after the evening gown competition.