NEED TO KNOW
- Kseniya Alexandrova, 30, a Russian former Miss Universe contestant, died on Aug. 12, weeks after an elk hit her car’s windshield in a freak accident
- The model was driving with her husband in the Tver Oblast region of Russia when the tragedy occurred
- Alexandrova and her husband had only been married for several months at the time of the accident
A model and former beauty queen has died, weeks after an elk smashed through her windshield in a freak accident. She was 30.
Kseniya Alexandrova sustained severe brain injuries from the incident, which occurred in July, while she was driving in Tver Oblast, Russia. She later died in the hospital due to complications from her injuries on Aug. 12, Russian news source Rossiyskaya Gazeta reported.
Alexandrova and her husband had been driving home from Rzhev on July 5 when their car collided with the elk, the outlet said.
Alexandrova sat in the passenger seat while her husband was driving, when the animal suddenly jumped onto the road.
“From the moment it jumped out to the impact, a split second passed. I didn’t have time to do anything,” Alexandrova’s husband told Rossiyskaya Gazeta in a statement translated from Russian.
He recalled that Alexandrova was unconscious after the impact, adding, “Everything was covered in blood.”
The husband additionally told Rossiyskaya Gazeta that other drivers stopped to help, and that emergency services arrived on the scene within about 15 minutes. Alexandrova was transported to a hospital in Moscow, but her injuries ultimately proved fatal.
She had married her husband four months before the accident, according to her Instagram.
In addition to her modeling career, Alexandrova represented Russia in the Miss Universe pageant in 2017. She was also first runner-up in the Miss Russia competition earlier that same year, per Us Weekly.
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Alexandrova was also a practicing psychologist, having earned a degree from Moscow Pedagogical State University, according to a personal update on her Instagram in November 2022.
Alexandrova’s modeling agency, Modus Vivendis, confirmed the news of her death in a statement shared on Instagram on Aug. 13.
“It is with great sadness that we inform you that our colleague and friend, model Kseniya Alexandrova, passed away yesterday evening,” the statement, which was translated from Russian, began.
“Kseniya was bright [and] talented. She knew how to inspire, support and give warmth to everyone who was around. For us, she will forever remain a symbol of beauty, kindness and inner strength,” the agency continued.
“We sincerely mourn and express our deepest condolences to her family, friends and everyone who had the good fortune to know Kseniya,” the statement concluded.
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