NASSAU, Bahamas – Miss Venezuela was the fairest of them all, again.
Venezuelan Stefania Fernandez won the 2009 Miss Universe pageant in the Bahamas on Sunday night.
Dressed in a flowing red gown, Fernandez embraced runner up Miss Dominican Republic as the announcement was made, and received the crown from last year's winner, Dayana Mendoza, of Venezuela. The sparkling tiara fell to the floor at one point, as Fernandez danced in joy.
Venezuela, a beauty-obsessed South American country, has won the Miss Universe pageant six times.
(Stefania Fernandez)
During a question-and-answer segment with the five top finalists, Fernandez said she believed women have overcome obstacles such as hitting the proverbial glass ceiling.
"I feel we have reached the level that men are at," she said.
The other top-five finalists were runner-up Ada Aimee de la Cruz, followed by Miss Kosovo, Droga Ganusha; Miss Australia, Rachael Finch; and Miss Puerto Rico, Mayra Matos Perez.
The top 15 finalists appeared in bathing suits before the final 10 were chosen for the evening gown segment.
Pageant co-owner Donald Trump told reporters, "I think this is the most beautiful group of women I've ever seen."
The televised event includes musical performances by Flo Rida, Heidi Montag, David Guetta and Kelly Rowland.
Montag gave her first live performance, singing "Body Language" from her debut album.
Fans cheered on the blond star of MTV's "The Hills," although NBC, which is broadcasting the event in the Bahamas live, blocked out more than half of her performance as they introduced the 15 finalists.
"It's my first performance live and it's in front of a billion eyes. So I'm very excited to show everyone what I'm coming with," said Montag before her performance.
Hosts are Billy Bush, co-anchor of "Access Hollywood," and Claudia Jordan, a former Miss Rhode Island USA who has appeared on several TV shows. Judges include actor Dean Cain and supermodel Valeria Mazza.
Miss China, Wang Jingyao, was named Miss Congeniality and Miss Thailand, Chutima Durongdej, won Miss Photogenic.
Many contestants have suffered from dehydration in recent weeks, and Jewel Selver, Miss Turks and Caicos, went home Saturday to recuperate, said Esther Swan, Miss Universe spokeswoman.
Sourse:Yahoonews
Sunday, August 23, 2009
Miss Universe 2009:Venezuelan Stefania Fernandez wins Miss Universe crown
Friday, July 18, 2008
Dayana Mendoza in swimwear
Dayana Mendoza, Miss Universe 2008, poses for a photo in her BSC swimwear at a Ho Chi Minh City hotel on June 19, 2008. She won the crown in the 57th annual Miss Universe competition in Nha Trang, Vietnam at the Crown Convention Center on July 14, 2008.
Dayana Mendoza wallpaper
Dayana Mendoza - Miss Venezuela 2007 and Miss Universe 2008 - wallpaper 1024 x 768
Dayana Mendoza wearing crown
Picture of the beautiful Miss Universe 2008. Her name is Dayana Mendoza. She is a really beautiful Venuzuelan Babe.
Dayana Mendoza - cute smile
The worlds best and most elegant beauties strutted their stuff on the stage at the Crown Convention Center (Diamond Bay Resort) in Nha Trang, Vietnam. With 80 contestants in the pageant it was tough to tell who would come out the victor of the luxurious event. Since the end of the Vietnam war, this was the largest USA-based broadcast from Vietnam. This is also the first time ever that the Miss Universe contest was held in 1080i HD, which made it nicer to be able to see all the beauty these girls had to offer.
