Pageant News Archives @ Rahul's World of Pageants: Part II

Miss World Web Site Launch

Last year's continental queens pose on the Miss World cover

Julia Morley has plenty to smile about. While barely avoiding a disaster last year and receiving the most publicity a pageant has gotten in years (Which may be a good or bad thing), she is excited to be going back to the simple roots of what makes Miss World so popular: Girls, girls, girls! It appears on the Miss World Web Site (http://www.missworld.tv) that Sanya, People's Republic of China, will get to fulfill its wishes of hosting the Miss World Pageant...and why not? The World Health Organization has virtually declared China SARS-free, with countries opening up their borders once again, cities coming back to life, the tourism sector taking off and life returning to normalcy. All travel advisories to China have been lifted, and the Miss World delegates will get to enjoy the first major international beauty pageant taking place in the nation.

The Miss World Pageant has not changed its final venue a lot since it moved out of London for the first time in 1989, but the Miss World contestants have had the opportunity to travel to numerous other locales along the way, including: The Seychelles, Miami Beach (Florida), Malta, Macau, Malaga (Spain), Hong Kong, Taiwan, Norway, South Africa, Bangalore (India), Paris (France), Comoros, Dubai (U.A.E.), the Maldives, Abuja (Nigeria), Atlanta (Georgia) and now Hainan.

In an effort to bring the pageant full-swing into 2003, the pageant is continuing yet another stint with teletext and online voting, following the lines of European pageantry, from Norway to Spain. It is unknown if online voting will be used as part of the judging or just for an award, but the voting will start one month before the pageant this year. Meanwhile, the organization is developing corporate partnerships and sponsorships, including offering tour packages to the pageant. Another pleasant surprise will be the construction of Miss World Stadium, the appropriately-named venue for the pageant in the design of its crown, which will be illuminated at night. Just like the last two years, viewers will be treated to a packaged pre-show before the event itself.

Justine Going Places

ASSOCIATED PRESS - Justine Pasek, Miss Universe 2002, signed a contract with Warning Model Management, Inc. of Beverly Hills, California. Among their model list is the in-demand Kylie Bax, among others. The prestigious agency made their own comments on their exciting 'acquisition':

We have huge interest and impatient clients awaiting her arrival and availability since being crowned Miss Universe," says Omar (Special Projects Director). "Yostin has worked over the past year with some of the biggest companies in the world in a charity capacity, but now we will be marketing her to clients such as Victoria's Secret, Christian Dior, Estee Lauder, Revlon, Chanel, Neiman Marcus and Valentino."
An Associated Press Release; Photo by Chateau Atlanta

Mrs. World 2003

Suzanna Pavadee Vicheinrut-Muangkroot of Thailand was crowned Mrs. World 2003 from 39 delegates at the Las Vegas Hilton on Monday night. She is 28 years old and a radio personality, who graduated from UCLA (University of California at Los Angeles and has been married for three years). She cooked Thai cuisine in the talent portion of the pageant, which also included a rock-climbing contest and the more traditional evening gown and swim-wear competitions.

The Runners-Up were: Mrs. Zimbabwe Isabel Kasper (1st), Mrs. Costa Rica Ana Gonzalez Navaro (2nd), Mrs. America Kristi Phillips (3rd) and Mrs. Bulgaria. Remaining semi-finalists came from Bolivia, Estonia, Puerto Rico, South Africa and Lithuania. Avid pageant fans will note that Pavadee is a former Miss Thailand Universe who finished 14th overall at the Miss Universe Pageant in 1995 in Namibia. Miss Sri Lanka from that very year was also a runner-up at the Mrs. World Pageant a few years back.
An Associated Press Release; Photo by Thaimodels.com

Public Will Choose Mexico's Miss World 2003 Delegate

It is making an impact in pageants all over the world. In Spain, South Africa, Tahiti, Sweden, Norway, and even at Miss World 2001 and 2002 (Just to give some examples), voting by cell phone and the internet was added into the overall scores. So, Miss Universe and Miss World director for Mexico, Lupita Jones, has added her own touch to it, deciding that at this year's Nuestra Belleza de Mexico competition, the winner will be chosen for next year's Miss Universe and Miss World competitions. So, she found four delegates from previous editions and had them compete in a small, private pageant. Erika Peña Ramírez, a major favorite among Mexicans who failed to make the top five in 2001, along with Maria Jose Rosado, last year's third runner-up, were sent home. The final two are:

Erika Lizeth Honstein García from Sonora (Second Runner-Up, 2002) and Lilian Jesús Villanueva Chan from Quintana Roo (Third Runner-Up, 2000). Erika stands 1.81 m tall (About 6'), while Lillian is only 1.70 m tall, but won the title 'Reina Internacional de las Flores', one of the premiere pageants among Spanish-speaking countries. So what is next? Internet voting, of course! You must register as a member of esmas.com to vote for your favorite from the two, and one will wear the crown!
News and image from esmas.com

Julia Morley: Expanding Business

With the Miss World Pageant months away, Julia Morley, President of Miss World Limited, restated her intentions to begin marketing the pageant more and more as a business beyond a one-month event and telecast. At this year's contest in Sanya, China, the company hopes to unveil the first of a series of partnerships with international consumer goods companies, which should see the launch of a wide range of Miss World products, from branded make-up, to fashion items and haircare. A Miss World magazine is also planned.

She also mentioned using the Miss World Web Site for a shopping section, including selling contestants' gowns (How she will manage to do this is unknown) and wants to begin a modelling school. Her desires for the pageant itself are to continue bringing it up to the latest styles: "I am not saying that my husband did not do a great job. But when he died two-and-a-half years ago, it was neccessary to move it forward and to bring it up to date," she says.

Morley is also negotiating with British television stations to bring the pageant back to terrestrial tv, which boycotted the event last year for the first time ever. She says that three channels are in contention, but a major problem is that there is a British elitism which often scorns the pageant. She has also been constantly flying to and from China to make sure that nothing on the lines of last year's Miss World Pageant will occur again. The Chinese organizers have paid her 5 million dollars (U.S.) for hosting rights and a lot of money is to be made off tv rights and the commercial proposals Morley wants to bring to the pageant. She managed to break even last year, after having to find a new venue and paying to fly her contestants to London.

"I don't know if you have noticed but no one has since given a hoot for that kid [Amina Lawal]," she says. "I still do," adds Morley, referring to the heavily-publicized boycott over a stoning sentence last year, which magically lost its press coverage when the Miss World Pageant moved out of Nigeria.
The Telegraph, UK; Image by the Miss World Web Site

Miss Tahiti 2003

20 year-old Heitiare Tribondeau was elected Miss Tahiti on June 20th, 2003 on the gardens of the Papeete Town Hall. She is a Letters student at the University of French Polynesia. 19 year-old Hina Tetuanui was named First Runner-Up and 19 year-old 'Miss Marquises' winner Ivanui Guillemoto was named Second Runner-Up. 2,000 people attended the event which was telecast on two channels and featured a scoring system where public voting counted for 30% of the final outcome. Heitiare will represent Tahiti at the 2003 Miss World Pageant in China, and the organization is still unsure on whether the runner-up will be allowed in December's Miss France Election.
Release and Image by Tahiti Presse

Miss World 2003 Renews Controversy

As if Miss World did not need any more controversy, the Chinese media's confirmation of Sanya as the host venue is not followed up by confirmation from the Miss World Organization. President Julia Morley refuses to give confirmation, stating that she will do so only at the end of August.

Some countries may choose to forego a delegate if it is indeed held in China, which still has the SARS stigma attached to it despite a winning battle being fought against it.

In the meantime, Sun International, organizers of Miss South Africa, will only be able to confirm Cindy Nell's participation when they get all the details at the end of the Summer. For the rest of the world, wait and see!
Release by News24, South Africa

Two Beauty Queens Debut and Succeed

Its been three years since Lara Dutta and Priyanka Chopra won their respective titles, but compared to their 'little sister' Diya Mirza, they waited much longer to make their film debut, and did it together in Andaaz, their feature film with veteran actor Akshay Kumar. What did the critics have to say? They hated it. Comments from moviegoers were that the movie was the same old, archaic love triangle-with a twist flick that nobody cares for today. However, the movie has been a success, which is extremely rare in Bollywood today, where most movies head to the failure line. First of all, the movie has a huge budget and was extremely publicized, causing the curiosity of moviegoers, and to top it off it featured two of India's well-known beauty queens, Priyanka and Lara. Lara is praised for looking good, as well as Priyanka, who also gets mentioned for some good emotional scenes in the film. It is something for both of them to smile about, as they look for future movies which actually test their acting capabilities.
Image courtesy of the 'Andaaz' Web Site

Miss World 2003 Breaking News

With the outbreak of SARS in the People's Republic of China, many rumors began floating around that Miss World 2003 might possibly change its venue to another country to avoid contestant withdrawals. HOWEVER, a breaking press release by the Chinese media has confirmed that the pageant will go in the said venue, between November 9th and December 6th, 2003.

Contenders from 117 countries and regions will converge on Sanya and the pageant would be televised live to those countries and regions, said sources with the Sanya municipal government on Sunday. The cultural exhibition center, named the Crown of Beauty, is designed and built especially for this contest. Located by the scenic tropical Sanya River, the center covers a total area of 90,000 square meters with an investment of 120 million yuan (about 14.5 million US dollars).

The first-phase project includes building a main building, a square, a parking lot, a cruise ship wharf and auxiliary service facilities, covering a construction area of 40,000 square meters.

Tourism in the P.R. of China is gradually beginning to stabilize as SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) is starting to show signs of disappearance as the battle is fought against it. Hainan, an island off of the mainland, is one of the few provinces in China not to have experienced any SARS cases whatsoever, and is continuing this trend by screening all outsiders thoroughly to ensure the resort area is not affected.
Thanks to the People's English Daily, China

Miss World 2003: Changes Ahead?

Miss South Africa, Cindy Nell was elated by finishing Second Runner-Up in the recently concluded Miss Universe Pageant, but her duties include represent South Africa at the Miss World Pageant. Now, it is not assured that she will get to go to the December pageant, as the Miss South Africa Pageant is in December and under her contract, she must be there to crown her successor. Last year, Vanessa Carreira was left extremely unhappy that she also had to miss the pageant, first to boycott the political climate of Nigeria, but when the boycott was called off, she needed to crown her successor and her First Runner-Up was sent, instead.

Tammy-Ann Fortuin, the exotic First Runner-Up from Miss South Africa, might be smiling soon if the decision is to keep Cindy at home. However, Cindy remarked that she has every desire to compete in the Miss World Competition.

Miss World Chairwoman Julia Morley seems to be hinting that due to SARS concerns, a potential disaster will be avoided by moving the pageant from Sanya, China. The city was signed before last year's Miss World Pageant and preparations were under way, but with the possibility of delegates cancelling their participation, she has no longer confirmed the venue. The Chinese media leaked the information, and rumors circulated that the pageant may be moved to Turkey.
Thanks to News24 Online

Miss Namibia 2003

Petrina Thomas, a 21 year-old from Keetmanshoop, was crowned Miss Namibia 2003 in Windhoek at the beginning of June. She will go on to compete at Miss World 2003 in China or Turkey later this year, and Miss Universe 2004 in Ecuador.
Thanks to the Windhoek Digest

Miss Lebanon 2003

Marie-Jose Hnein was crowned Miss Lebanon 2003 in a grand ceremony in Beirut on May 23rd, 2003. She also won the special award of 'Miss Trendy', and is scheduled to represent Lebanon at Miss World 2003 in China this December, and may possibly be sent to the Miss Universe and/or Miss International Pageants in 2004, but nothing is confirmed so far. This 18 year-old Business Management student comes from Baabda. The First Runner-Up was Leen Sleiman, a 20 year-old form Balbeck, who also won 'Miss Photogenic', and the Second Runner-Up was 21 year-old Rita Lamah from Beirut, who also won 'Miss Beautiful Eyes. Manale Aziz, Elise Gertrayal, and Celine Zaymoun made up the remaining three finalists who had the chance to actually compete in the final show. In a series of weekly pre-pageants on LBC, the original sixteen were trimmed down to six as they would face each other off. The pageant included a fashion show with Valentino designs.

Miss Earth 2002 Dethroned

Miss Kenya, Winfred Adah Omwakwe, was First Runner-Up at the 2002 Miss Earth Pageant to crowned winner Miss Bosnia and Herzegovinda, Dzejla Glavovic. In a swift motion, Dzejla was dethroned by the pageant for refusing to fulfill certain obligations, and Winfred, a physiotherapy student, was elated at the decision. Dzejla, a professional model, was extremely unpopular among delegates, who, during the final moments of the pageant, began screaming for Kenya and stormed offstage when the announcement was made. According to press reports, numerous delegates made some very strange reportings: Miss Puerto Rico's national costume was found in her dress, Miss Paraguay found her stealing her food and then a piece of her talent costume. Miss Guatemala reported that Dzejla would sleep in late and fake sick to get out of rehearsals. Many others simply reported her as being cold-hearted and cruel to the other girls and refusing to apologize for her acts. For most of the delegates, Miss Kenya's promotion to 'Miss Earth' is an excellent one.
Thanks to the Philippines Daily Star. Photo courtesy of Mabuhay Beauties Online.

Miss Universe 2003 Daily News Updates are to be found on the Miss Universe 2003 Coverage Section

Miss World Visits New Zealand

Azra Akin, the reigning Miss World, made a visit to New Zealand this week, among her activities being a charity dinner and fashion show to benefit the Child Cancer Foundation and Variety Clubs. The 21-year-old was meant to wear an electric blue Escada Couture trouser suit, which had been imported from Germany especially for the event. The size 10 outfit was encrusted with hand-beaded Swarovski crystals. But after Miss Akin and Miss World organiser Julia Morley saw the outfit – which had a halter neck plunging to the navel – it was replaced with a more demure red Escada dress, worth a mere $15,000.

Miss Akin said she had to abide by several rules, including not getting married, pregnant or taking drugs during her reign. She also had to stay the same weight. However, the Turkish beauty queen, who lives in Holland, said she hoped to try some New Zealand icecream: "I love icecream." Otherwise her diet consisted of plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables, fish and chicken, with little bread, she said. The 1.75-metre (5ft 9in) model leaves Auckland on Wednesday. Thanks to Stuff.New Zealand.

Miss Peru World 2003

Claudia María Hernández Oré, a 21 year-old, 5'9" print and runaway model from Piura , was crowned Miss Peru World 2003 on the 7th of May at the Sheraton Hotel in Lima. 35 delegates from all over Peru competed in this final event, which was hosted by Speedy Gonzáles and Natalia Peralta, Miss Colombia World 2002, hosted the event. Judges included Miss Perú Mundo 2000, Tatiana Angulo; Adriana Zubiate, Miss Perú Universe 2002; and actress Alexandra Graña. First Runner-Up was Lima's Ivette Santa María, who won honors last week to go to Miss Intercontinental 2003. Second Runner-Up was Cusco's Albada García. Completing the top ten were: Amazonas, Ica, Miraflores, La Punta Callaro, Ancash Pomabamba, Ayacucho y Apurimac. Winners from this pageant will be later designated to Miss Asia-Pacific, Miss Earth, Miss International and a host of other international competitions. Thanks to Perumodels.com.

SARS Screening at Miss Universe

PANAMA CITY, Panama (AP) - Miss Universe organizers said Tuesday that all contestants - but especially those representing countries most affected by SARS - will have to show medical documents certifying they are healthy before they will be allowed to participate in the pageant. Seventy-four women from all over the world are expected to travel to the Panamanian capital, where the contest will be held in a yet-to-be-completed convention center June 3. At a news conference, Panama City mayor Juan Carlos Navarro said requiring medical certification from all contestants was an important way to ensure the virus won't spread to Panama.

"Miss Universe won't represent the slightest danger to Panamanians,'' Navarro said. The mayor said all contestants would be required to show letters or other documents written in English and Spanish by doctors in their home countries at least two days before they arrive in Panama. The health certifications will be collected by Anti-SARS specialists the Health Ministry plans to station at the capital's airport, he said. Navarro said contestants arriving from China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Canada and other areas most-affected by the outbreak of SARS would be required to provide even more prove they are not carrying the virus.

But the mayor said he couldn't clarify exactly what proof that they are healthy contestants from those countries will be required to show. Navarro said that if an arriving contestant shows signs of having contracted SARS, she will be quarantined in a special clinic and may not be able to participate in the pageant. Contestants are expected to begin arriving May 15, the mayor said. Some 6,600 people worldwide have been infected with the SARS virus and 480 people have died because of it. Courtesy of AP Wires.

Gauhar Getting Married?

Gauhar Khan an ardent young Muslim girl from Pune, finished 4th at the Femina Miss India Competition last year, and many felt that she had not gotten her due in the pageant. She was sent to the Miss International 2002 Pageant in Japan, and agan many fans commented that she was not given her due, despite an incredible performance and determination. No bitterness for this babe, though. Designers and companies have been knocking at her door, wanting her exotic looks and confidence in their shows and advertisements.

Since then, she has become a VJ for the B4U network (India Top Ten), having been exposed to the limelight by her older sister Nigar Khan. Gauhar is a Graduate in Commerce from Wadia College, Pune, but then began modelling, and was in Paris last week with Neeta Lulla. Rumors has it that she is engaged to entertainment personality Sajid Khan, and the two are set to be married eventually. Gauhar does not rule out films, later, insisting on masala only. Thanks to Erica Reyes AKA Matutina and The Hindustan Times.

Miss Peru Universe 2003

Claudia Ortiz de Zevallos, a 21 year-old, 5'10" print and runaway model from Arequipa, was crowned Miss Peru Universe 2003 on the 29th of April at the Sheraton Hotel in Lima. Last year she was first runner-up in the competition, intended to go to the Miss International Pageant but later sent to the Miss Earth Pageant in the Philippines, where she was 5th overall, and won the "Best in Long Gown" title, aside from being considered a favorite for the pageant. On the 7th of May, the remaining Miss Peru delegates will compete to become Miss Peru World 2003, aside from representatives to Miss International, Miss Earth and Miss Asia-Pacific. No finalists were named in this event, only award winners. Marcela Granda, Miss Callao-Cercado, won Miss Teen Peru and will go to Miss Teen World 2003. Diana Goytizolo, Miss Amazonas, won Best Face and will go to Reina Internacional de las Flores. Aldana Garcia, Miss Cuzco, won Best Hair and will go to Reina Sudamerica later this year in Bolivia. Ivette Santa Maria, Miss Lima, won Best Body and will get a chance at the Miss Intercontinental title later this year in Germany. Of course, all four sub-winners will be also trying to grab titles in the final event next week, where Natalia Peralta from Colombia, and of course, Marina Mora from Peru, for a special event. Thanks to Perumodels.com.

Miss China Universe 2003

Wu Wei from Fujian Province was elected Miss China Universe 2003 in a special ceremony Sunday night. She is 1.76 m tall, and measures 85-60-87.

First Runner-Up was Zhang Rui and the Second Runner-Up was Xin Xiaojing. Jiang Xintian, a deaf-mute girl,was the recipient of the Media Focus prize. A total of 2,000 girls registered for the competition across the country, and 39 of them were chosen to compete in the final round held in Jinan, the capital of east China's Shandong Province, Sunday evening. Thanks to the South China Daily.

Will There be a Mr. World?

In 1996, the first Mr. World pageant was held in Istanbul, Turkey, attracting almost 60 contestants, being held in a large theater with thousands of invitees and being televised with guests such as Ivana Trump and Bruce Forsythe. In 1998, the 2nd pageant was likewise successfully held in a Portuguese resort and managed to be a classy, well-attended event. In 2000, a desperate Mr. World Pageant was held in Edinburgh, Scotland and held in a small ballroom, after many differing reports and postponements. The pageant was suffering from lack of sponsership and lack of interest in the fact of the much bigger Miss World Pageant.

According to the Miss World Organization, the 4th edition of Mr. World will be held on Saturday, August 9th, 2003, at the Brewery International Conference Centre in Kendal, England. According to a fax sent to directors, contestants are expected to arrive in London by August 1st. Throughout 2001, organizers claimed a pageant would be held in London, England. Throughout 2002, a similiar claim was made that the pageant would be hosted in Sri Lanka. Given the official confirmation of dates, some countries, such as Venezuela, are rushing to choose a winner. On the other hand, national winners in nations such as Puerto Rico, Italy, Philippines and Spain are waiting to compete internationally. We can only hope for the best. The Brewery Arts Centre is located in Kendal in the central part of the Western Coast of England, in an area known as the "English Lake District" for its beautiful scenery. The venue seats 250 people.

Gladrags Megamodel and Manhunt 2003

The 2003 edition of Gladrags was held in Mumbai on Saturday, April 12th. Gladrags Manhunt 2003 is Muzamil Ibrahim, a 19 year-old, 6' tall Delhi-ite. He is a First-Year student in Mechanical Branch, and comes from Kashmir. He is a complete newcomer to modelling. First Runner-Up was Ganesh Venkataraman, 23 years old, 6'1" and from Mumbai. He is a software engineer. Second Runner-Up was Anant Pradhan, 21 years old, 6'1" and from Sikkim. The Tulip Star Hotel in Mumbai was the host venue.

Gladrags Megamodel 2003 is Deepti Gujral, a 21 year-old, 5'9" tall Mumbai-ite currently pursuing higher education and modelling. Deepti was a semi-finalist in the 2001 Femina Miss India Pageant. First Runner-Up was Deepa Chari, 21 years old, 5'8" and from Mumbai. Second Runner-Up was Parul Chaudhury, 22 years old, 5'7" and from Delhi. She is a hotel management graduate and a jewellery designer.

Muzamil will represent India in the 2003 Manhunt International Pageant in China, while Deepti will go to the Miss Intercontinental Pageant in Germany and any other designated contest. More importantly, they will be launched into the glamour world.

The Show: Former Gladrags contestant Simone Singh compered the event, which opened in a "Chicago" inspired set, where the contestants introduced themselves and danced to "Asereje". This was followed by pole-dancing during a swimsuit production number, and a musical interlude by Shefali Jariwala.

Aishwarya Makes Headlines

In the Hospital Former Miss World and world-reknowned celebrity Aishwarya Rai was injured in a jeep accident during a shooting for the film "Khaki" in Trimbakeshwar, India (Some hours outside of Mumbai). The jeep skid over her on April 2nd, 2003. She will be discharged sometime today, April 9th.

Bond Girl? Aishwarya is rumored to have been offered a role in the next James Bond movie opposite Pierce Brosnan. No official confirmation has appeared, but this is according to her press secretary. Rai, the highest-paid actress in India at this point, still has a few other projects under her sleeves. She will be going to London in May to finalize talks.

Airing Dirty Laundry Rai made a startling statement to the press, as well. Speculation ran strong a few years back that she was involved with leading actor Salman Khan in a romantic relationship. However, Rai stayed silent until recently, when she told the press that her relationship Salman "was a nightmare" in her life and that she had ended it two years ago. "For the sake of my well-being,my sanity, my dignity and the dignity and self-respect of my family—enough! I will not work with Mr Salman Khan. The Salman chapter was a nightmare in my life and I am thankful to God that it is over," the former Miss World said in a two-page signed statement. Aishwarya also claims tht she endured mental, physical and emotional abuse in the relationship and was harassed by Salman's friends and family, and had dealt with Salman's alcoholism as well. Khan, whose star is quickly fading with a lack of film offers, age, alcoholism and a recent charge of accidental murder, is currently out of the country.

Honorable Distinction Aishwarya Rai has earned the distinction of being the first Indian actress to be on the jury of the Cannes International Film Festival, starting in France from May 14. The actress has confirmed to the president of the Festival, Gilly Jacob, that she will attend the festival as member of the jury, sources close to her told PTI here.

Miss France Universe 2003

Comite Miss France, which obtained the rights to send delegates to the Miss World Pageant in 1999, elected it's first Miss France Universe last week. Emmanuelle Chossat won the 2003 Miss France Universe title. She is 24 years old and 5'10" tall. Emmanuelle is a Journalism Communication student and specializing in Cosmetic Journalism with a goal of becoming a Fashion Critic. She speaks English, French and Spanish and in her spare time designs cocktail dresses, choreographs dances and sings pop and rhythm and blues music. Emmanuelle represented France in Miss World 2001, where she was the only contestant from her group to make the 'leaderboard.' The official title of 'Miss France' is held by Madame Geneviève de Fontenay, a public figure in France. She lost her Miss World rights in 1999 as a result of fighting with Eric Morley, and lost the Miss Universe franchise in 2002 as a result of wanting to start her own international pageant.

Miss Estonia 2003

Crowned on Friday night in an event televised on TV3 Estonia, Maili Nömm won the 2003 Miss Estonia title. She is 17 years old and 1.74 tall, and represented Ivoonia. As a 17 year-old, there is a good chance she may not go to the Miss Universe Pageant in Panama

First Runner-Up: Miss Tallinn, Natalja Soldatova, a 19 year-old, 1.76 m student, who may not be designated as Estonia's delegate to Miss Universe. Second Runner-Up: Miss Viroonia, Katrin Susi, a 22 year-old, 1.78 m tall model. Thanks to Michael Knittel.

Miss Austria 2003

The new Miss Austria was crowned on Saturday Night (March 29th) at the Casino of Baden. 21 year-old Tanja Duhovich, representing Vienna, won the title of Miss Austria 2003and will go the Miss World Pageant in China this December. She is 5'8.5" (1.74 m) tall. 16 year-old Jasmin Molnar was First Runner-Up, and may represent Austria in the 2003 Miss Europe Pageant. The Second Runner-Up was 19-year old Bianca Zudrell. Thanks to Michael Knittel.

Miss Ecuador 2003

Andrea Jácome, representing Guayas, won the title of Miss Ecuador 2003 on Thursday, March 27th in Quito. She is 22 years old, 5'6" and will represent Ecuador in the Miss Universe Pageant in Panama. Meanwhile, Mayra Renteria, representing Esmeraldas, finished with the title of Miss Mundo Ecuador and will be her country's second consecutive representative of color in the 2003 Miss World Pageant in China. She is 18 years old and 6'0" tall. The First Runner-Up was a favorite for the title, Leovana Orlandini Febres-Cordero, who may be sent the Miss International Pageant or other events.

Femina Designates Delegates Abroad

Femina, the franchise-holder to five of the earth's largest pageants for India, has made official announcements and confirmations for the 2003 years.

Parmita Katkar, a 23 year-old fitness and model instructor from Bangalore, will represent India in the 2003 Miss Asia-Pacific Quest in the Philippines in December. Shonali Nagrani, a 21 year-old Graduate Student and Lecturer in History from Delhi, will represent India in the 2003 Miss International Beauty Pageant in Japan, most likely to be in October. In addition, Femina has also named Elitra Coelho, a Femina Miss India 2002 delegate from Mumbai, to attend the Miss Tourism Intercontinental Event in Malaysia in April. Elitra won the Miss Beautiful Hair title at Miss India 2002, previously held the title of Miss Mumbai, and is a professional model. Thanks to Lavrenti Lopes for confirmations.

Grasim Mr. India 2003

Rajneesh

23 year-old Rajneesh Duggal from New Delhi was crowned Grasim Mr. India 2003 at the Andheri Sports Complex on March 22. Duggal will compete at the 2003 Mr. International Pageant in Mumbai during the fall. His prizes included 3 lakh rupees and a trophy. Vikrant Mahajan, also from Delhi, became the first runner up and Secundrabad's Satyam Shankar Sahay the second runner up from among 28 contestants.

Earlier, the final question — Which form do you want to see God in? — had the six finalists scribbling down their answers.

The list of eminent judges — Manish Malhotra, Nausheen Sardar, Lillete Dubey, Kalpana Lajmi, Gautam Rajyadhaksha, Azharuddin, Malaika Arora, and Cathrina Guiborg — unanimously chose Delhi-boy Rajneesh Duggal's answer — dulhan — as the form he would like to see God in.

Former Miss India-Canada Ruby Bhatia and Former Miss World Yukta Mookhey hosted the event. For more about Grasim Mr. India, Click Here.

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