Wenxia Yu was crowned Miss World 2012 on Saturday at the Dongsheng Stadium, beating out 116 other contestants from around the globe.

Yu is the second Chinese contestant to take the crown in the Miss World competition, after Zhang Zilin won in 2007. Yu, 23, is fluent in both Chinese and English. She studied music in school, namely piano, and has aspirations to become a teacher.

Yu is the 61st winner to be named in the Miss World pageant since it was created in 1951. According to its website, Miss World was first created as part of the Festival of Britain celebrations by Eric Morley.

In 1951, 26 women competed for the crown and Sweden's Kiki Haakonson was named the first Miss World. Throughout the 1950's, the risqué swimsuit outfits grabbed public attention. Within a few years, the competition garnered a global audience when it was televised by the BBC from 1959 to 1979 and then Thames Television until 1988. In 1970, the competition, hosted by Bob Hope, was the single most-watched show of the year in the United Kingdom. Fifty years later, the show attracts more than a billion viewers each year.

The competition changed slightly in 1980, with categories added for personality and intelligence, which were judged in the evaluation portion of the contest.

Miss World, which reached its half-century anniversary in 2000, remains one of the most popular shows in the world. It has franchises in more than 130 countries and $450 million in fundraising.

Here's a look at photos of the Miss World 2012 winner, Wenxia Yu, and past winners throughout the years.