Miss Universe 2007 was the 56th Miss Universe pageant, held at the Auditorio Nacional in Mexico City, Mexico, on 28 May 2007.
At the end of the event, Zuleyka Rivera of Puerto Rico crowned Riyo Mori of Japan as Miss Universe 2007. It was Japan's first victory in forty-eight years, and the second victory of the country in the pageant's history.
Contestants from seventy-seven countries and territories competed in this year's pageant. The competition was hosted by Mario Lopez and Vanessa Minnillo, Miss Teen USA 1998. Mexican Latin pop group RBD performed in this year's pageant.
Background
Location and date On 11 February 2007, Pedro Rodríguez, president of the Grupo Promotor Mu México announced that the cities of Cancún and Oaxaca will host the 2007 edition of the pageant in May. However, on 30 March 2007, Donald Trump, owner of the Miss Universe Organization, and Paula Shugart, president of the Miss Universe Organization, announced that the pageant will take place at the Auditorio Nacional in Mexico City on 28 May 2007. Oaxaca had to reject from being one of the host cities for some pageant events due to the political-social conflict happening at the state. The ruins of Monte Albán in Oaxaca was planned to be the location for the national costume competition, but was relocated to the Angel of Independence in Mexico City.
Selection of participants Contestants from seventy-seven countries and territories were selected to compete in the competition. Two of these delegates were appointees to their positions after being a runner-up of their national pageant or being selected through a casting process, while two selected to replace the original dethroned winner.
Replacements Sharon Kenett was appointed to represent Israel at Miss Universe after Liran Kohener, Miss Israel 2007, had to complete her mandatory military service. Miss Mauritius 2006 Melody Selvon was replaced by Sandra Faro, the first runner-up of Miss Mauritius 2006, due to being underage. Selvon was only 16 years old.
Debuts, returns and withdrawals The 2007 edition saw the debuts of Tanzania, Serbia, and Montenegro as two separate nations, and the returns of Barbados, Belize, Curaçao, Honduras, Italy. Honduras last competed in 2002, while the others last competed in 2005. The Cayman Islands, Chile, Ethiopia, Ghana, Iceland, Ireland, Latvia, Namibia, the Northern Mariana Islands, Sint Maarten, Trinidad and Tobago, Turkey, and the United Kingdom withdrew after their respective organizations failed to hold a national competition or appoint a delegate. Serbia and Montenegro competed as two separate countries starting in this edition. Aruni Rajapaksha of Sri Lanka withdrew due to undisclosed reasons. However, Rajapaksha competed in the pageant the following year. Casynella Olivierre of the Saint Vincent and the Grenadines withdrew for unknown reasons despite announcing that she will compete in Miss Universe 2007 two years in advance. Lestapier Winqvist of Sweden withdrew after not showing up for the pageant since she finded the competition "misogynistic".
Incidents before the pageant In April 2007, controversy erupted over the proposed national costume of Rosa María Ojeda, Miss Mexico. The skirt of the costume depicted scenes from the Cristero War, a Roman Catholic rebellion in the 1920s in which thousands of people were killed, including hangings. The outfit also included a bullet-studded belt and a crucifix necklace. The design was chosen from over thirty others and had been intended to show Mexico's culture and history, but it elicited controversy amid claims it was in poor taste and inappropriate. Pageant owners said that the costume would be redesigned to include image of the Virgin of Guadalupe.
Results
Placements Placement Contestant Miss Universe 2007 – Riyo Mori 1st Runner-Up – Natália Guimarães 2nd Runner-Up – Ly Jonaitis 3rd Runner-Up – Honey Lee 4th Runner-Up – Rachel Smith Top 10 – Micaela Reis – Puja Gupta – Rosa María Ojeda – Xiomara Blandino – Flaviana Matata Top 15 – Lucie Hadasová – Žaklina Šojić – Tjaša Kokalj – Farung Yuthithum – Lyudmila Bikmullina
Special awards AwardContestantMiss Congeniality – Zhang NingningMiss Photogenic – Anna Theresa Licaros
Pageant
Format The Miss Universe Organization introduced several specific changes to the format for this edition. The number of semifinalists was reduced to 15— the same number of semifinalists in 2005. 15 semifinalists were chosen through the preliminary competition— composed of the swimsuit and evening gown competitions and closed-door interviews. The top 15 competed in the swimsuit competition and were narrowed down to the top 10 afterward. The top 10 competed in the evening gown competition and were narrowed down to the top 5 afterward. This was the first year since 2002 that the judges' average scores were shown on television. The top 5 competed in the question and answer round and the final look. It was the first time since 2001 that the final question posed on the ladies came from the judges instead of the final five and the current Miss Universe.
Selection committee
Final telecast Tony Romo – Dallas Cowboys quarterback James Kyson Lee – actor on Heroes Nina Garcia – Project Runway judge and Elle magazine fashion director Dave Navarro – rock star Dayanara Torres – Miss Universe 1993 from Puerto Rico Mauricio Islas – Mexican actor Lindsay Clubine – Deal or No Deal briefcase model Marc Bouwer – fashion designer Christiane Martel – Miss Universe 1953 from France Michelle Kwan – World champion, 1998 Olympic silver medalist, and 2002 Olympic figure skating bronze medalist
Contestants Seventy-seven contestants competed for the title. Country/Territory Contestant Age Hometown Albania 18 Tirana AngolaMicaela Reis18Luanda Antigua and BarbudaStephanie Winter18St. John's ArgentinaDaniela Stucan25Ensenada ArubaCarolina Raven23Tanki Leendert AustraliaKimberley Busteed18Gladstone BahamasTrinere Lynes18New Providence BarbadosJewel Garner24Christ Church BelgiumAnnelien Coorevits21Wijtschate BelizeMaria Jeffery25Belize City BoliviaJessica Jordan23Huacaraje BrazilNatália Guimarães22Belo Horizonte BulgariaGergana Kochanova20Sofia CanadaInga Skaya21Toronto ChinaZhang Ningning20Shenyang ColombiaEileen Roca20Valledupar Costa RicaVerónica González24Orotina CroatiaJelena Maros19Split CuraçaoNaemi Monte20Willemstad CyprusPolyvia Achilleos22Nicosia Czech RepublicLucie Hadašová20Strážnice DenmarkŽaklina Šojić25Copenhagen Dominican RepublicMassiel Taveras22Santiago EcuadorLugina Cabezas20Quito EgyptEhsan Hatem21Cairo El SalvadorLissette Rodríguez22Mejicanos EstoniaViktoria Azovskaja20Tallinn FinlandNoora Hautakangas23Soini FranceRachel Legrain-Trapani18Saint Quentin GeorgiaAna Giorgelashvili19Martvili GermanyAngelina Glass19Berlin GreeceDoukissa Nomikou20Athens GuatemalaAlida Boer22Guatemala City GuyanaMeleesea Payne21Georgetown HondurasWendy Salgado24Tegucigalpa HungaryIldikó Bóna19Kaposmérő IndiaPuja Gupta23New Delhi IndonesiaAgni Pratistha19Jakarta IsraelSharon Kenett21Tel Aviv ItalyValentina Massi24Forlimpopoli JamaicaZahra Redwood25Kingston JapanRiyo Mori20Shizuoka KazakhstanGaukhar Rakhmetaliyeva20Almaty LebanonNadine Njeim19Maaser El Shouf MalaysiaAdelaine Chin Ai Nee23Kuala Lumpur MauritiusSandra Faro20Quatre Bornes MexicoRosa María Ojeda20Culiacán MontenegroSnežana Bušković19Podgorica New ZealandLaural Barrett20Christchurch NicaraguaXiomara Blandino22Managua NigeriaEbinabo Potts-Johnson19Port Harcourt NorwayKirby Ann Basken21Oslo PanamaSorangel Matos22Yaviza ParaguayMaría José Maldonado21Fernando de la Mora PeruJimena Elías18Lima PhilippinesAnna Theresa Licaros22Cuenca PolandDorota Gawron23Częstochowa Puerto RicoWilmadilis Blasini25Guayanilla RussiaTatiana Kotova21Moscow Saint LuciaYoanna Henry25Soufrière SerbiaTeodora Marčić19Novi Sad SingaporeJessica Tan25Singapore SlovakiaLucia Senášiová23Bratislava SloveniaTjaša Kokalj21Ljubljana South AfricaMegan Coleman22Hillcrest South KoreaHoney Lee24Seoul SpainNatalia Zabala24San Sebastián SwitzerlandChrista Rigozzi24Monte Carasso TanzaniaFlaviana Matata19Shinyanga ThailandFarung Yuthithum20Pathum Thani Turks and Caicos IslandsSaneita Been21Providenciales UkraineLyudmila Bikmullina21Kharkiv United StatesRachel Smith22Clarksville United States Virgin IslandsRenata Christian23Saint Thomas UruguayGiannina Silva22Montevideo VenezuelaLy Jonaitis21Tocuyito ZambiaRosemary Chileshe26Lusaka
Notes
References
External links
Miss Universe official website