Miss World 2008 in South Africa

On 24 August 2008, Julia Morley, the owner of Miss World announced in the pageant's official website that this year's contest is moved to South Africa. Here is the statement of Morley:

Miss World 2008 will be hosted

by Johannesburg - World Class
African City.

We look forward to welcoming contestants in Johannesburg on Sunday 16th November.

The 58th Miss World Final will be held at Sandton Convention Centre in Johannesburg on Saturday 13th December 2008.

Contestants will enjoy a full South African authentic experience and during their 4 week stay will visit many exciting landmarks of South Africa.

All details will follow.

Julia Morley

Yesterday, 29 August 2008, she released an official statement to the press. Here is copy of the statement from Julia:

It was decided that for reasons beyond Miss World's control, it was necessary to move the final from Ukraine. When this was announced in the media, several cities/countries approached the Miss World Organisation about the
hosting of Miss World 2008 Final.

Each city presented to Julia Morley, Chairman of Miss World Limited, their plan for hosting. This included details of hotel arrangements, a suitable venue to stage the final and the backing of all the parties necessary to stage a successful world class event in their city.

Julia Morley was very impressed with the bid from Lindiwe Mahlunga of the Johannesburg Tourism Company, as it not only fulfilled all the requirements to stage the final but also was backed by a young dynamic team who sincerely believe in their World Class City. Johannesburg is therefore the host city for Miss World 2008

" The speed with which they have implemented their proposal and the professional and dedicated support of Lindiwe and the JTC team have already demonstrated that we can stage the most successful Miss World in our history."

"We look forward to working with the city of Johannesburg to promote their World Class City in over 180 countries during our one month Miss World Festival. Our goal is to bring more visitors to your vibrant city so that they too can enjoy the sights and sounds of Joburg and the hospitality if its people."

Julia Morley