TIDBITS:
With less than 8 hours to go the excitement is tremendous. Many have
already labeled this pageant as the most competitive in the history of
the Miss Universe and tonight we can expect an exciting event to take
place!
Anyway as we countdown the hours here are some last thoughts on the
pageant in its entirety.
If
I had to personally choose this year's Miss Universe I would want it
to be USA, Shandi Finnessy. I think she is one of the most beautiful
faces in the pageant and I think is the complete package. On a side
note I think that if the Miss Photogenic Award would be given by the
press she'd win the award as well. Anyway besides Miss USA I think
following closely on my list of who I'd like to win are Paraguay and
Ukraine. (Don't confuse this with my predictions). Anyway like I said
I think any of the top 5 girls from my predictions would make a good
Miss Universe.
BREAKING NEWS: According to
News.com.au Kwame Jackson,
scheduled to be a judge tonight was removed from the panel. According
to a statement by the MUO Kwame violated the rules by
interacting with the delegates. He was caught waving at some of them
while visiting the hotel.
THOUGHT ON THE PRELIMS: I just
want to say that even though competition was real good this year we
did not see a lot of stunning evening gowns like we did in previous
years. Even on some of the favorites the gowns were just ordinary. As
for the swimsuit competition I do hope they go for a solid color
during the pageant itself. The swimsuit used during the prelims didn't
flatter some of the delegates.
THOUGHTS ON THE DELEGATES: Back at
the
pageantgossip forum a member asked me why I did not
mention some other candidates. My initial answer was I did not have
room, so I decided to put up this page as a catch all for all my other
thoughts.
Here is a copy of my post:
"Actually like I said on my site this competition is so tough. I
try to limit myself to predicting the Top 15 plus 5 alternates and 2
wildcards. To be honest I would really like to add a couple of names
to my list beside the ones you mentioned I also like India, Bahamas
and maybe France and Germany.
Anyway to answer your question its interesting to note that I had
these three girls on my short list (actually long list) this year. IMO
Belize did very well during the prelims, I really took notice.
However I think it was not enough to get past the stunners. Cayman
Islands had a very interesting choice of evening gown and I liked
it. Mexico has always looked good and sexy. I think she did
everything right during the prelims but she's probably not what
they're looking for. I don't how to explain it though."
I wrote this about Miss India who was number 21 on my list but I had no room for it.
India: Last year we were all disappointed when India sent a
sub-par delegate who no less deserved to break the 11-year semifinals
streak of this modern-day pageant powerhouse. This year they sent
someone better, but not quite. Tanushree Dutta (no relation to Lara)
was actually my choice for one of the Top 3 Miss India awards.
Unfortunately, she didn't shine in Ecuador until the preliminary
evening gown competition; expect her to bounce back if she can wow the
judges with the wit Miss Indias are known for.
Here are some other thoughts on other delegates:
Philippines: Someone from the media network I work for asked me
why I did not select Miss Philippines. Well anyway as an answer I
think Maricar Balagtas did a good job. She has great hair, a good body
and she did well during the prelims. I loved her choice of evening
gown. Anyway I don't know how to describe it whether she looks old or
has a heavy face. Don't get me wrong I think she's beautiful.
France:
This girl was really one of my Top 10 favorites for quite a while. Her
prelims performance was such a let down however that I think she
really lost her shot at placing. Ms. France was one of the most classy
delegates all throughout all the activities. Whatever happens she has
one of the prettiest faces in the pageant.
There are two more Latin American delegates who I have considered to
have done well. First is Costa Rica. Nowhere on other pageant
sites has she been a favorite. The reviews don't say much bout her so
I wasn't able to make a decision. Personally I like many of the photos
I have seen on her and do consider her a beautiful delegate. She did
well in the evening gown competition.
Chile: Has an amazing body. She was one of the best in swimsuit
at the preliminaries but I think her choice of evening gown though
pretty was somewhat dated. I think these two girls are good
possibilities as well. I expect Latin American beauties to do well in
this competition.
If
I had to personally choose this year's Miss Universe I would want it
to be USA, Shandi Finnessy. I think she is one of the most beautiful
faces in the pageant and I think is the complete package. On a side
note I think that if the Miss Photogenic Award would be given by the
press she'd win the award as well. Anyway besides Miss USA I think
following closely on my list of who I'd like to win are Paraguay and
Ukraine. (Don't confuse this with my predictions). Anyway like I said
I think any of the top 5 girls from my predictions would make a good
Miss Universe. 
France:
This girl was really one of my Top 10 favorites for quite a while. Her
prelims performance was such a let down however that I think she
really lost her shot at placing. Ms. France was one of the most classy
delegates all throughout all the activities. Whatever happens she has
one of the prettiest faces in the pageant.