|||MAG||| July 19 - 25, 2008

Reigning
Beauty
of
2008
by Suzanne Hussain

And The Winner Is… Miss Venezuela!

Miss Venezuela was crowned Miss Universe 2008 on Monday, 14th July (by Riyo Mori of Japan, Miss Universe 2007) in a contest marked by the spectacle of Miss USA falling down during the evening gown competition for the second year in a row. The 1st Runner Up was Taliana Vargas (Colombia) , 2nd Runner Up Marianne Cruz Gonzalez (Dominican Republic) , 3rd Runner Up Vera Krasova (Russia), and 4th Runner Up was Elisa Najera (Mexico). The new Miss Universe, Dayana Mendoza 22, is a 5-foot, 10-inch (178-centimeter), green-eyed beauty who enjoys learning languages and photography. At a news conference after this year's event, a beaming Mendoza said she wasn't yet sure where her upcoming year of whirlwind appearances would take her. But after a quick stop in New York, she wants to see her family again, enjoy some of her mom's home cooking and give everyone hugs. "When I go back to Venezuela I will jump on my family and they will jump on me," said Mendoza. In the meantime, Mendoza said, she is simply looking forward to taking off her high-heeled shoes and massaging her feet. She declined to discuss her kidnapping, which occurred a year and a half ago, but took advantage of the occasion to call for global peace. "I want to raise my voice and tell the world that violence is not the answer," she said. Miss Thailand won the prize for best national costume and Miss El Salvador was chosen by her peers as Miss Congeniality.

Who would have thought that a local "bathing beauty" competition spearheaded by Catalina Swimwear in Long Beach, California, would metamorph into an international annual tradition with countless young women around the world vying to become Miss Universe?

The winner of the "Miss America 1951" pageant, Yolande Betbeze, refused to pose in a swimsuit from its major sponsor, Catalina swimwear. As a result, the brand's manufacturer Pacific Mills withdrew from Miss America and set up the Miss USA and Miss Universe contests. The first Miss Universe Pageant was held in Long Beach, California in 1952. It was won by Armi Kuusela from Finland, who gave up her title to get married to a Filipino tycoon, Virgilio Hilario, shortly before her year was complete.
As hundreds of millions of fans have watched in 125 different countries, the homegrown contest has evolved into a powerful, year-round, international organisation that advances and supports opportunities for these role models.
Becoming what is now considered Universal royalty is still an obtainable dream for young women more than 50 years later. Today, Miss Universe has become a fixture of pop culture, ingrained in the landscape of our minds. These women are savvy, goal-oriented and aware. The delegates who become part of the Miss Universe Organisation display those characteristics in their everyday lives, both as individuals, who compete with hope of advancing their careers, personal and humanitarian goals, and as women who seek to improve the lives of others. Currently, Miss Universe is experiencing a rebirth, playing a critical role in making the next 100 years "The Century of Women." The Miss Universe Organisation, a New York-based partnership between NBC and Donald Trump, has run the contest since June 20, 2002. The current president is Paula Shugart.
The main pageant was held consecutively in the continental US from 1952 to 1971. Since then,

Perception vs Reality We would like to share with our readers some perceptions that are mere perceptions with no reality to them. Perception Contestants train and compete in beauty pageants for years before ever winning the crown. Reality Most titleholders never competed in the pageant system before being crowned. For example most recently, Denise Quinones, Miss Universe 2001 and Marissa Whitley, Miss Teen USA 2001, had never competed in pageants before winning their state and then national crowns. Perception A beautiful woman can be created! Contestants competing in pageants are encouraged to undergo or have undergone cosmetic surgery. Reality The majority of the contestants have not surgically altered themselves. In fact, at the international level many countries, including Sweden, France and Israel, have banned plastic surgery from their events completely. Unnecessary surgery is certainly not encouraged or endorsed. Perception Beauty Queens all want "world peace", and don't have any understanding of current events and issues affecting the world. Reality The Miss Universe Organisation has targeted issues and aligned them with each of the titleholders to maximise fundraising and educational effects. Each Miss Universe works to see the end of the global AIDS pandemic. Perception Upon the conclusion of their reign, titleholders fade away. Reality Former titleholders continue to make great strides in their communities and the nation through their chosen professions or philanthropic work. Perception Beauty pageants exploit women. Reality These competitions provide the access, means and guidance to help contestants maximise their strengths and achieve their professional and personal goals. The judging system awards points based equally on personal interview, style (evening gown) and fitness (swimsuit). Additionally, consideration is placed on self-confidence, poise, public speaking skills, knowledge of current events and personality.

the pageant has been held in locales around the world - Puerto Rico, Athens, Manila, Hong Kong, Perth,

Singapore, Bangkok, Cyprus, to name some.

How to become a candidate:
Usually a country's candidate selection involves pageants in major cities, with the winners competing in a national pageant, but this does not always occur. For example, in 2000 Australia's national pageant

was abolished as a relic of a bygone era, with Australian delegates instead chosen by a modelling agency. Such "castings" are generally discouraged by the Miss Universe Organisation, which prefers national pageants that preserve an aura of respectability and competition. Despite being "cast", Miss Australia, Jennifer Hawkins, was chosen as Miss Universe 2004. Later that year, Australia resumed its national pageant and chose Michelle Guy as Miss Universe Australia 2005.
According to the organisers, the Miss Universe contest is more than a beauty pageant: women aspiring to become Miss Universe must be intelligent, well-mannered, and cultured. Often a candidate has lost because she did not have a good answer during the question responses rounds; although this section of competition has held less importance during recent pageants than it did in the twentieth century. Delegates also participate in swimsuit and evening gown competitions.
The winner is assigned a one-year contract with the Miss Universe Organisation, going overseas to spread messages about the control of diseases, peace, and public awareness of AIDS. Since Donald Trump took over the pageant, the winner has been given the use of a Trump Tower apartment in New York City for use during her reign.
Aside from the main winner and her runners-up, special awards are also awarded to the winners of the best National Costume, Miss Photogenic, and Miss Congeniality.
This year Miss Universe was held in

Vietnam. The show was hosted by Jerry Springer and singer Mel B. Female actor Eesha Koppikhar had also been selected as one of the judges at Miss Universe 2008. Apparently, she is the first Bollywood actress to judge this particular contest.

Crown The Miss Universe crown used from 2002-2007 was designed by Mikimoto, the official jewellery sponsor of the Miss Universe Organisation, and depicted the phoenix rising, signifying status, power and beauty. The crown has 500 diamonds of almost 30 carats (6.0 g), 120 South Sea and Akoya pearls, ranging in size from 3 to 18mm diameter and is valued at $250,000. For Miss Universe 2008 a new crown was unveiled. Valued at $120 thousand dollars, it is made of 18K white and yellow gold. It is comprised of over 1,000 precious stones; including 555 white diamonds (30 carats), 375 cognac diamonds (14 carats), 10 smoky quartz crystals (20 carats) and 19 morganite gemstones (60 carats). The colours of the jewels chosen for the crown have great significance. The yellow luster of the gold represents the prosperous thriving economy in Vietnam. White, light pink and cognac are the main hues in the crown which represent inspiration and feeling. Each piece of the crown was designed to represent an important attribute of the Miss Universe Pageant. The curves of inlaid precious stones represent the strong development and potential of each country. The image of the crane (Lac Bird) symbolises Vietnamese spirit and culture. The image of the heart represents unified breath, rhythm and vision, which are powerful internal forces that stress faith, hope and unity. But this Vietnamese crown will be used in the 57th edition only and the Mikimoto crown will return in 2009.

Favourites For Miss Universe
This year's Miss Universe Beauty Pageant was one of the toughest so far - almost all the 80 delegates were equally stunning. There were a lot of mini-competitions that were held before the finals. Meaning, the judges had a lot of opportunities to study the delegates prior to the preliminary competition. The top favourites that stood out were:

Miss Venezuela (Dayana Mendoza), Miss USA (Crystale Stewart), Miss Puerto Rico (Ingrid Marie Rivera), Miss Korea (Sun Lee), Miss Kazakhstan (Alfina Nassyrova), Miss India (Simran Kaur) and Miss South Africa (Tansey Coetzee).