The best Miss Universe 2009 candidates during the swimwear and national costume events

Michelle Malcolm, a broadcast journalist in Bahamas, is joining the 84 candidates competing at Miss Universe 2008 in their daily activities. She is posting her regular updates about the pageant and her comments on the girls at Critical Beauty.

Michele attended the the swimsuit presentation last Sunday and the national costume parade last Monday. She made a lists of the ladies who impressed her both for the swimsuit and the national costume.

I am posting here her list for you to read.

Below are the ladies who caught her eyes during the swimwear presentation in alphabetical order:

Angola – great body, strong catwalk
Australia – fabulous body, beautiful face, good catwalk
Bahamas – the home town girl received a thunderous round of applause for her strong catwalk skills
Brazil – pretty face, great body
Canada – fabulous body! Not an ounce of fat anywhere!
Cayman Islands – great body, strong catwalk
Colombia – great body, sexy catwalk
Czech Republic – very good body, and oh that face!
Dominican Republic – very great body, excellent catwalk
France – good body, very outgoing and sexy on the runway
Great Britain – Loads of personality, good body
Honduras – fabulous body, fabulous catwalk, beautiful face
Hungary – beautiful face, great body, but needs work on the catwalk
Iceland – very good body, great catwalk Jamaica – beautiful face, nice body
Japan – great body, strong catwalk
Mexico – good body, lots of personality, good catwalk
Netherlands – very good body!
Nicaragua – great body, fun to watch on stage
Norway – fabulous body!
Puerto Rico – fabulous body, great catwalk skills
Russia – great body, amazing face, very sexy catwalk
Slovak Republic – good body, very good catwalk
South Africa – great body, legs for days!
Spain – very good body
Sweden – fabulous body, pretty face, catwalk skills could be stronger
USA – fabulous body, arguably the best in swimsuit at this competition!
Venezuela – great body, classic beauty

And below are the ladies who impressed her during the national costume parade in alphabetical order:

Angola, who wore a traditional dress showing scenes of everyday life in Angola
Bahamas, whose costume depicted the sun that covers The Bahamas
Bolivia, inspired by a dance of her country
China, a dramatic warrior
Colombia, a colorful traditional dress
Czech Republic, a gown with a butterfly motif
Ecuador, representing a bountiful harvest
El Salvador
India
Jamaica
Kosovo
Mexico
Namibia
Nicaragua, which represented the fury of a volcano
Panama, representing Diablo in pheasant feathers, glass and crystals
Peru
Philippines, a colorful twist to the traditional Filipiniana
Thailand, a combination of the Thai Hill Tribe and traditional costume
Ukraine
Venezuela, an exquisite costume which reminded me of the film My Fair Lady

She added that there judges presented at the national costume event. They will be the one to pick up the winner of the Best in National Costume. The judges include President of the Senate of Bahamas, Lynn Holowesko; the CEO of Mailboxes Etc. in the Bahamas and the Caribbean, Mr. Gershin Major; Founder of the Bahamas International Film Festival, Leslie Vanderpool; artist John Edward Cox; Junkanooer Kishlane O’brien; entrepreneur Elaine Pinder; and retail executive Rochelle Walker of Solomon’s Mines.

Michelle also added that the candidates who have the biggest fans or supporters in every event are Miss Bahamas Kiara Sherman (of course), Miss Philippines Pamela Bianca Manalo, Miss China Jing Yao Wang and Miss Venezuela Stefania Fernandez.

Peru and Bolivia are in conflict over Miss Peru Karen Schwarz's national costume

Living in Peru, a Peruvian website, disclosed that Peru and neighbouring Bolivia are in a controversy over a national or traditional costume which was inspired in a typical dance from Puno highlands called “La Diablada” (The Devils' dance).

When Karen Schwarz, Miss Peru Universe 2009, presented the La Diablada-inspired outfit to the media, Bolivian representatives claimed that it is an unfair appropriation of the Bolivian's cultural heritage. They said that the La Diablada “is an emblematic dance from Bolivian folklore.”

The website reports, "Pablo Groux, Bolivian Minister of Culture, has reportedly sent a letter to Peru's National Institute of Culture (INC), expressing Bolivian's concern regarding to this matter."

Peruvian Foreign Minister Jose Garcia Belaunde said: "The Highlands cultures are one. If Miss Schwarz is Peruvian, she has the right to wear the 'Diablada' dress.”

Ricardo Davila, the designer, was surprised too, and said “we have not copied the Bolivian diablada. My costume is based on a dance from Puno.”

INC representatives said that "the dance of diablada is performed during festivities in Peru, Chile and Bolivia as well, since it's a cultural expression from the Andean highlands."

This dance was declared Peruvian's Cultural Heritage by the INC on September 2nd, 2003.

Miss Spain sets new trend in pageantry

Spain is setting a trend in beauty pageantry.

Miss Spain is for the first time being held outside of Spain. The 52 Spanish beauties representing the 52 provinces of Spain are in Cancun, Mexico doing all the pre-pageant activities before the final night on July 18th at the Hotel Oasis.

The winner of Miss Spain 2009 will go directly to Bahamas to compete at the Miss Universe 2009.

Patricia Rodriguez, Miss Spain 2008, told the ladies to enjoy their stay in Mexico. She also added that her reign had been marvelous and her title had enabled her to travel, become a more rounded person and make a lot of important contacts.

What is the reason why Miss Spain is not taking place in its home country?

Andrés Cid, the president of the competition, said that the worldwide economic situation had made them move the frontiers and added that it was highly likely that future editions of the competition would be held in other world destinations.

Mexican ambassador to Spain was delighted that his country had been chosen to host the competition and hoped that it would 'reinforce the historical, cultural and linguistic links that the two countries share.' He was confident that the Mexican people would welcome the contest with 'characteristic warmth' and that his country would provide an idyllic backdrop for the contest.

The ambassador said was pleased that his country had the opportunity "to promote as a tourist destination on the worldwide stage", especially in view of recent events (referring to the recent swine flu epidemic).

It was reported that one contestant fainted during one of the activities because of the hot temperature in Cancun. It was also reported that Dominican Republic was first considered as the host country.

 

 

 

Miss Tibet 2009 kicks off with swimsuit round

Dharamsala, June 5 - First phase of a three-day Miss Tibet beauty pageant competition kickstarted with a swimsuit round at a resort here this afternoon.

The competition started with four contestants Dolkar, 24, from Dehra Dun; Ngawang Choying, 18, from Darjeeling; Tenzin Choezom, 20, from Dharamsala and Yeshi Lhamo, 24, from Bir, performing a ramp show in skimpy swimwear around a mini swimming pool of Asian Health Resort here.

The participants contested for 10 points judged by five jury members for their figure, skin, posture and poise.

A handful of public enthusiasts willing to spare 200 rupees for a not more than 30-minute show turned up to watch, what has been described by many in the exile Tibetan community as, the “most daring” part of the beauty pageant.

A strong media presence, including documentary filmmakers, however, dominated the scene of today’s competition round.

Scores from six more competition rounds in the next two days will add up to decide the final crowning of this year’s Tibetan beauty on the grand finale night on Sunday at the Tibetan Institute of Performing Arts (TIPA).

The Presentation and talent rounds will be held Saturday at TIPA.

Lobsang's Miss Tibet pageant is small but has been fairly controversial too. Since it was first started by Lobsang Wangyal Productions in 2002, the exile Tibetan community has reacted with quiet mixed feelings and attitude.

Not surprisingly, the contest has also irritated the Chinese, whose troops began occupying Tibet in 1949. In the past winners of Miss Tibet were forced to withdraw from international beauty pageants after objections from the Chinese government. This has given Miss Tibet its much needed media attention and with it its share of success on the international stage.

At times, however, the pageant struggled itself to survive witnessing only a single participant.

Nevertheless, Lobsang has remained adamant with a pledge to take his one-man show to greater heights all along the way.

“My Miss Tibet show is already eight years old now,” Lobsang delights over the successive continuation of his pageant.

And this year, he has added one more flavour to his show- Dinner with Miss Tibet.

“It is going to be more interesting this time,” Lobsang says of his newly conceived idea, which he says will help him to cash in little more funds for his production unit.

“There is lottery tickets on sale and one winner will be drawn from the lots for an exclusive dinner with winner of this year’s Miss Tibet title. The lottery ticket is priced at Rupees fifty. And the winner can bring along one companion,” Lobsang explains.

“And it is going to be a grand dinner with Miss Tibet 2009 at Mcllo Restaurant & Bar,” Lobsang confirms.

Emiri Miyasaka Wins Miss Japan Universe 2009

Looking on the pictures of the winner of Miss Japan Universe 2009, I believe Japan will be another force to reckon with at the Miss Universe 2009 pageant to be held in Nassau, Bahamas on August 23.

Emiri Miyasaka, a beautiful 24 year-old was crowned Miss Universe Japan 2009 during the final competition in Tokyo last night, May 11.

The event was organized by Ines Ligron, the famous National Director for Japan

There is one remarkable thing I've noticed from the pictures of the pageant. You can easily see that the girls are really having fun. When Miyasaki was announced as the winner, no traces of bitterness can be seen from the faces of the other contestants. They were like just children having play.

Saudi Arabia Prepares for ‘Miss Beautiful Morals’ Pageant

Although we still say and hear that true beauty comes from within, few – if any – are the beauty pageants that crown their winners on anything but great looks and model-like abilities. In Saudi Arabia, the “Miss Beautiful Morals” beauty pageant has just reached its second year and, as the organizers are happy to announce, the number of contestants has doubled.

Speaking with Times Online, pageant founder Khadra al-Mubarak says that “Miss Beautiful Morals” is meant to show the world that western pageants have got it all wrong from the start, with the emphasis they place on looks and abilities that, in the end, say close to nothing about how that person really is like. “Miss Morals,” for instance, is not about outside beauty, since contestants hardly show their face, but about what makes a woman truly beautiful – such as is, say, her love, respect and appreciation for her parents.

“The idea of the pageant is to measure the contestants’ commitment to Islamic morals... It’s an alternative to the calls for decadence in the other beauty contests that only take into account a woman’s body and looks. The winner won’t necessarily be pretty. We care about the beauty of the soul and the morals.” the pageant founder says for the publication.

The competition starts on Saturday and will see the approximately 200 contestants spending the following 10 days “attending classes and being quizzed on themes including ‘Discovering your inner strength,’ ‘The making of leaders’ and ‘Mum, paradise is at your feet’.” the Daily Mail says. All contestants will also spend a day with their mothers, under the strict supervision of pageant judges, who will then rate their love and respect for them. The winner, who will be crowned “Miss Beautiful Morals,” will walk away with $2,600 and several other prizes, while the first two runnerups will get $1,300 each.

Since the contest is not televised and no men are allowed to participate, women will be allowed to uncover their faces during the 10-day period. Although it may seem like nothing, the “Miss Beautiful Morals” competition is extremely important, being the first (and only, so far) competition of the kind in Saudi Arabia, as the Mail points out.

“There are no such displays in ultra-strict Saudi Arabia, where until Miss Beautiful Morals was inaugurated last year, the only pageants were for goats, sheep, camels and other animals, aimed at encouraging livestock breeding. This year’s event kicks off Saturday in the mainly Shiite Muslim town of Safwa, and mostly draws local Shiite contestants. But it’s open to anyone – and this year, 15 Sunni Muslims are participating, al-Mubarak said.” the publication informs.