Miss Universe 2001 was the 50th anniversary of the Miss Universe pageant, held at the Coliseo Rubén Rodríguez in Bayamón, Puerto Rico, on May 11, 2001.
At the conclusion of the event, Lara Dutta of India crowned Denise Quiñones of Puerto Rico as Miss Universe 2001. This was Puerto Rico's fourth win in the history of the pageant.
Contestants from seventy-seven countries competed in this pageant. The competition was hosted by Elle Macpherson and Naomi Campbell. Todd Newton acted as backstage correspondent, while Miss Universe 1997 Brook Lee provided commentary for the whole event. Ricky Martin and La Ley performed in this edition.
Background
Location and date After twenty-nine years, the Miss Universe pageant returned to San Juan to hold its 50th edition on May 11, 2001. According to Puerto Rico's tourism director, Jorge Pesquera, the final telecast of the competition will help promote the territory to potential tourists.
Selection of participants Seventy-seven countries and territories competed in the pageant. Three candidates were appointed to their position to replace the original winner.
Replacements Poland was to be represented by the first runner-up of Miss Polonia, Malgorzata Rozniecka. However, studies prevented her from attending, and the organization replaced her with Monika Gruda. The organization invited Miss Russia 2001, Oxana Fedorova, to attend the pageant, but was unable to compete due to her studies. She was replaced by first runner-up, Oxana Kalandyrets, who reached the top 10. Fedorova would go on to win the following year's Miss Universe pageant, only to be replaced with her runner-up four months later.
Miss Spain 2001, Lorena van Heerde Ayala, was unable to compete as she was underage. She was replaced by first runner-up, Eva Sisó. Ayala was due to compete in Miss Universe 2002, but after the threat of lawsuit by her family against the Miss España Organization for breach of contract, she cut all ties with the Miss España organization and lost the right to represent Spain at any international pageant.
Debuts, returns, and withdrawals This edition marked the debut of Slovenia; and the returns of Antigua and Barbuda who last competed in 1979; and Curaçao, Nicaragua, the Northern Mariana Islands, Turkey, and the United States Virgin Islands who last competed in 1999. Australia, Belize, Denmark, Great Britain, Guam, Hong Kong, Mauritius, Namibia and Sint Maarten withdrew after their respective organizations failed to hold a national competition or appoint a delegate. Phan Thu Ngân of Vietnam got married and refused to compete in Miss Universe 2001.
Controversies during the pageant France, Élodie Gossuin was confirmed to be a woman by medical examination, when it was rumoured that she was a transsexual.
Juliana Borges of Brazil admitted to the media that she had undergone plastic surgery nineteen times, stating "It's like studying for a math exam and you get good grades... you study and you work hard to have the perfect body". Despite a public outcry she was allowed to compete.
Results
Placements Placement Contestant Miss Universe 2001 – Denise Quiñones 1st Runner-Up – Evelina Papantoniou 2nd Runner-Up – Kandace Krueger 3rd Runner-Up – Eva Ekvall 4th Runner-Up – Celina Jaitly Top 10 – Élodie Gossuin – Ilanit Levy – Agbani Darego – Oksana Kalandyrets – Eva Sisó
Special awards AwardWinnerMiss Photogenic Puerto Rico – Denise QuiñonesClairol Herbal Essences Style AwardBest in SwimsuitMiss Congeniality Bahamas – Nakera SimmsBest National Costume South Korea – Kim Sa-rang
Pageant
Format Ten semifinalists were chosen through the preliminary competition— composed of the swimsuit and evening gown competitions and closed-door interviews. The ten semifinalists competed in the evening gown and swimsuit competitions and were narrowed down to five afterward. The five finalists competed in the question and answer round and the final question round, after which Miss Universe 2001 and her runners-up were announced.
Selection committee
Final broadcast
Mini Andén – Swedish model, actress, and television personality Marc Anthony – American singer Tyson Beckford – Jamaican-American model and actor Marc Bouwer – South African fashion designer Kel Gleason – A contestant from Survivor: The Australian Outback Richard Johnson – American columnist for the New York Post Dayanara Torres – Miss Universe 1993 from Puerto Rico Veronica Webb – American model and actress
Contestants Seventy-seven contestants competed for the title. Country/TerritoryContestantAgeHometown AngolaHidianeth Cussema19Cuíto Antigua and BarbudaJanil Bird22St. John's ArgentinaRomina Incicco18Buenos Aires ArubaDenise Balinge21Oranjestad BahamasNakera Simms22Nassau BelgiumDina Tersago22Puurs BoliviaClaudia Arano19Santa Cruz de la Sierra BotswanaMataila Sikwane23Gaborone BrazilJuliana Borges22Santa Maria British Virgin IslandsKacy Frett19Road Town BulgariaIvaila Bakalova19Varna CanadaCristina Rémond20Montreal Cayman IslandsJacqueline Bush25George Town ChileCarolina Gámez19Santiago ColombiaAndrea Nocetti23Cartagena Costa RicaPaola Calderón20Guanacaste CroatiaMaja Cecić-Vidoš20Rijeka CuraçaoFatima St. Jago22Willemstad CyprusStella Demetriou21Nicosia Czech RepublicPetra Kocarova22South Moravia Dominican RepublicClaudia Cruz de los Santos18San Juan EcuadorJessica Bermudez23Guayaquil EgyptSarah Shaheen19Cairo El SalvadorGrace Marie Zabaneh22San Salvador EstoniaInna Roos19Tallinn FinlandHeidi Willman19Jyväskylä FranceÉlodie Gossuin20Reims GermanyClaudia Bechstein22Thuringia GhanaPrecious Agyare18Accra GreeceEvelina Papantoniou22Athens GuatemalaRosa María Castañeda20Chiquimula HondurasOlenka Fuschich21Yoro HungaryAgnes Helbert21Budapest IndiaCelina Jaitly21Shimla IrelandLesley Turner19Newport IsraelIlanit Levy18Rehovot ItalyStefania Maria20Lombardy JamaicaZahra Burton21Kingston JapanMisao Arauchi19Aomori LebanonSandra Rizk19Koura District MalaysiaTung Mei Chin20Kuantan MaltaRosalie Thewma19Birżebbuġa MexicoJacqueline Bracamontes21Guadalajara NetherlandsReshma Roopram22South Holland New ZealandKateao Nehua19Ngātiwai NicaraguaLigia Cristina Argüello21Managua NigeriaAgbani Darego18Lagos Northern Mariana IslandsJanet King24Tinian NorwayLinda Marshall22Buskerud PanamaIvette Cordovez21Panama City ParaguayRosmary Brítez21Caazapá PeruViviana Rivasplata23Lambayeque PhilippinesZorayda Ruth Andam24Baguio PolandMonika Gruda19Masovia PortugalTelma Santos19Lisbon Puerto RicoDenise Quiñones20Ponce RussiaOksana Kalandyrets20Khanty-Mansi SingaporeJaime Teo24Singapore SlovakiaZuzana Baštúrová19Revúca SloveniaMinka Alagič21Maribor South AfricaJo-Ann Strauss20Cape Town South KoreaKim Sa-rang23Seoul SpainEva Sisó21Soses SwedenMalin Olsson19Skattungbyn SwitzerlandMahara McKay19Zurich TaiwanHsin Ting Chiang21Taipei ThailandVarinthorn Phadoongvithee24Nonthaburi Trinidad and TobagoAlexia Charlerie24Tunapuna–Piarco TurkeySedef Avcı19Adana Turks and Caicos IslandsShereen Novie Gardiner19Cockburn Town UkraineYuliya Linova23Zaporizhzhia United StatesKandace Krueger24Austin United States Virgin IslandsLisa Hasseba Wynne26Charlotte Amalie UruguayCarla Piaggio25Montevideo VenezuelaEva Ekvall18Caracas YugoslaviaAna Janković19Belgrade ZimbabweTsungai Muswerakuenda23Harare
Notes
References
External links
Miss Universe official website