Minority Report: Yes, I happen to like Miss Universe 2009. A lot!

I was in China covering the Miss Tourism Queen International pageant when it all happened. Miss Universe is not telecast there, You Tube is censured, so I did not see or learn anything about this year’s pageant besides the results, until I returned home.

Going back a few months, I remember when I saw Stefanía for the first time. She had won one of those preliminary prizes for Miss Venezuela (most beautiful face, perhaps), and when I saw the photo of Miss Trujillo, I immediately told a friend: “Can a woman be that stunning? There she is, Miss Venezuela, and Miss Universe 2010″. His response was: “You are crazy, there’s now back-to-back victories in Miss Universe”. And I thought: “Not yet, but if this woman wins in Venezuela, Miss U will have no alternative other than crowning her”.

The rest in history.

I recently watched the Miss Universe pageant and, honestly, looking at the top 15, she was the clear standout. Even the stunners from Australia and Iceland, two personal favorites of mine, did not look their best that night.

The new Miss Universe is absolutely impressive. She would look incredible in the 1950’s, in the 1980’s, and she does it today. Stefanía is one of those rare beauties who are noticeble even from a mile of distance. Her unique elegance and charm are unquestionable.

So what if her scores were not the highest in swimsuit and evening gown? Does anyone remember Deborah Carthy-Deu in 1985 or Dayanara Torres in 1993? The same is valid for Michelle McLean in 1992, and Brooke Lee in 1997. Or yet, Margareth Gardiner, in 1978, and so many others. who don’t come to mind now.

What matters is that when the judges had to vote, insted of giving scores, the majority of them picked Venezuela, and she won, with all merits, fair and square.

Another recent controversy is the fact that the MUO picks 6 out of the 15 semi-finalists. Is that new for anyone in the pageant world? They’ve been announcing it for years. Perhaps pageants are so irrelevant in the “real world”, that the media took 5 or 6 years to notice it, that’s all.

The only thing I personally question is: if the organization created this criteria to “make justice”, how can it ignore entire continents, such as Asia this year? Misses China, India, Indonesia and Japan were all great and just as deserving (or more deserving) than some of the Europeans who crowded the top 15 and top 10 and then fastly vanished, except for Kosovo, a nation still not recognized as an independent country by most countries in the world, but supported by the United States, which was the only remaining one to have reached the top 5, ending in 3rd place.

All in all, the pageant was fine, but nothing more than what we’ve been seeing for several years. There was nothing new and the production was poor when compared to the last editions of the pageant. However, the winner is great, possibly one of the best ever. At least in my eyes.

(artigo escrito por mim para o GlobalBeauties.com em 7/9/09)