Global Beauties le dedica reportaje a Colombia

[Realista]

Is it finally time for Colombia to have its 2nd Miss Universe? 


article by Henrique Fontes

Colombia probably has the most solid and followed national beauty contest in the world, the famous Concurso Nacional de Belleza, or simply, Señorita Colombia. The whole country stops to watch it and meet its new queen. That after weeks following all the pageant’s details on TV, newspapers, and of course, CROMOS magazine and its special editions covering the event. Cartagena de Indias is where it takes place every year, in November. All that I first learned from my good friend Ariel Harris when I lived in Florida, in the 1990’s.

But let me go back in time a few years first to describe my view of the country and the Miss Universe pageant. I started following Miss Universe when I was 9, back in 1981. However, it was only in 1984 that I first took notice of Colombia, when Susana Caldas placed 5th in Miami. That night I was flying from Sao Paulo to Porto Alegre to spend the winter vacation with my grandparents. When I got there, the show was over, and my grandma told me: “Switzerland (meaning Sweden) won Miss Universe. But Bolivia (meaning Colombia) was the most beautiful candidate”. Then my father called me on the phone to say: “Son, Miss Bolivia (meaning Colombia LOL) should have won, she was so beautiful”.

Why the hell in Brazil so many people say Bolivia meaning Colombia, and Colombia meaning to say Bolivia? Anyway…

I saw the rerun a few days later and understood that Colombia had indeed a striking face, but was a bit overweight to become the winner. Miss Sweden certainly deserved her crown (in my view).

 

In 1985 Colombia had another crowd and press favorite, gorgeous Sandra Borba, who for some reason, did not even make it to the top 10, also in Miami.

In the following year, Panama hosted Miss Universe and one of its best shows ever (perhaps the best on my book) and Colombia sent to its neighbour country a candidate with some of the most beautiful pair of green eyes ever seen in Miss Universe history, Maria Mónica Urbina. In a time when usually Miss Universe winner was a deserving one, Colombia stayed behind Miss Venezuela, Barbara Palacios, and USA, the other heavy favorite for the crown, finishing in an excellent (and fair) 3rd place.

It looked like that coveted crown was about to be conquered soon. In Singapore, in 1987, local press photographers chose Patricia Lopez as Miss Photogenic. Patricia had just been crowned Miss South America, leaving Venezuela and Peru (eventual finalist and semi-finalist in Singapore) behind. Many thought Colombia had it at that time, but again, with no logical explanation, the country was left in the ice, having failed to place.

The 1990’s are memorable for Colombia in Miss Universe. I confess that I never understood Lizeth Mahecha’s 3rd place in 1990 – I did not see much beauty on her, and her interviews were lousy. But then again, perhaps it was another signal, showing that Colombia was getting ready to finally win its 2nd crown (the first belongs to a distant 1958, when Luz Marina took honors in Long Beach).

What we would see soon after, was truly remarkable: in 1992, in Thailand, beautiful Paola Turbay, one of those faces it’s impossible to forget, was once again a front-runner who could finally go all the way and do it for her hopeful country. On her way, stood the extraordinary Miss Venezuela, Miss Iceland, and Miss Namibia, the candidate from a country which had recently gained its independence and had been a top 5 finalist in Miss World less than one year earlier.

celand did poorly in the interviews and missed the semi-finals by a detail (she placed 11th, only 10 qualified in those days). Venezuela led nearly all portions of the competition up to the top 6, but than Miss India took her spot after axing the judges’ Q&A, going through the top 3 with Colombia and Namibia.

India then gave a final horrible answer, finished 3rd, and Colombia and Namibia stepped forward, hand in hand! Again, it was so close, but yet, not the time for Colombia: 2nd place. Michelle McLean put Namibia on the world map when she was crowned Miss Universe 1992.

One year later, when Colombia was holding hands with Puerto Rico in Mexico City, in the final seconds of Miss Universe, it seemed fatal: Paola Andrea would take the gold for Colombia this time! But no… Dayanara Torres beat the odds and took back to her island its 3rd Miss Universe crown.

1994, Manila, Philippines. Carolina Gomez, Miss Colombia, was a rare beauty. Amazing face, perfect body, she had THE personality, and nailed all semi-final and final interviews. What could hold Colombia back from winning the title then?? India’s Sushmita Sen! In the same year India would also win Miss World and start and unbelievable run in major international pageants. Colombia, for the 3rd consecutive year, had to settle for 2nd place.

 

It was in 1994 that I became friends with Ariel in college, the friend who gave me true lessons on Colombia and its beauty pageant, and the passion Colombians had for their beauty queens.

That year, when there was no internet yet, we followed the Señorita Colombia from a close distance by buying CROMOS magazine every week (it was sold in Miami) and watching Colombia’s national pageant live in a Colombian food restaurant. My favorite, from Cesar, Tatiana Abuchaibe, was the eventual winner. When competing in Colombia she was so striking that I had no doubts she would finally win the Miss Universe title for her country one year later.

Namibia hosted Miss Universe 1995, and Miss Colombia was indeed, once again, a huge favorite for the title. However, it was a strange year,with weird results, and Abuchaibe, although absolutely stunning, did not perform well in the top 10: with the personality and energy of an oyster, she ended in 9th or 10th place, a real pity.


In 1999 Global Beauties was born, and the first ever Miss GB Universe was no other than Miss Colombia, Marianella Maal Pacini. In the pageant held in Trinidad & Tobago, again, although a favorite, Colombia did not place.

In the end, the 1990’s ended with no Miss Universe title for Colombia.

 

The new millennium started out well for Colombia, with a striking representative competing in Cyprus: Catalina Acosta. Beautiful as she was, her lack of energy and a wrong 1 piece swimsuit choice, were claimed to be the reasons why she stopped in the Top 10. Her evening gown performance was memorable, though! Acosta would later be crowned Miss Italia Nel Mondo.

In 2001, history was made when Colombia elected its first (and so far only) black winner: Vanessa Mendoza was a Barbie, beautiful and sweet, with a perfect figure and incredible face. Competing in Puerto Rico, she was GB’s #1 choice for the crown. And guess what? God knows why, the judges did not place her among the semi-finalists, in one of the pageant’s biggest upsets in all times.

 

Only in 2008 Colombia would once again send one of those rare hurricanes, capable to finally walking away with the Miss Universe crown and sash. Taliana Vargas was neck-and-neck all the way through the competition held in Vietnam with Venezuela’s Dayana Mendoza. It had to be one or the other. And indeed logic aplied and the two stood together, hand in hand in the end, as it had to be. Again, Colombia took silver…. Meanwhile, Venezuela had its 5th Miss Universe (who equally deserved to win, I must say).

Colombia’s performance in Miss Universe considerably cooled down after that: no favorites and only two out of five candidates placed as quarter-finalists (top 15 or 16).

But now Colombia is back, and perhaps with one of its biggest favorites EVER. Paulina Vega is close to perfect, physically speaking. In the preliminary event, she was so superior in both swimsuit and gown, that GB’s judges gave her all the way perfect marks and placed her as the one to beat in tonight’s competition.

Her status of favorite generated rumours and even news reports claiming that she was fake and had, to a certain extent, a nasty personality.

GB decided to check that out, and put pageant expert Juliano Crema, who’s attending the contest, to discretely check on that. His conclusion: “Miss Colombia is not nasty at all. She’s just focused and well educated, she does not go around giggling and laughing for nothing, like so many others who seem to be trying too hard”. That’s what we thought.

Anyway, Miss Colombia is the number one favorite for Global Beauties and also for Missosology. Easy it won’t be, after all, Spain, Ukraine, Venezuela, Jamaica, Guyana, USA, Mexico and others, are also competing strongly and could, once again, spoil a huge Colombian party.

I confess that tonight I will have my fingers crossed for Colombia, this beautiful country I still have to visit, but which I learned to love and admire, thanks to so many good friends I’ve made from there. I hope Ariel, Pedro Chadid, Paulo Abuchaibe, David Marquino, among others, will finally be able to celebrate something their entire country has been dreaming of, and should have gotten in more than one occasion.

Hopefully it’s finally time for Colombia in Miss Universe. Go, Paulina!

 

https://www.globalbeauties.com/blog/2015/01/is-it-finally-time-for-colombia-to-have-its-2nd-miss-universe/

[sesentaynueve]

OJALA QUE SI

[Benji]

Ay Jesús mas sal

[Esmeralda]

Pienso que Colombia los próximos años estará cerca de la corona con sus candidatas. 

[Realista]

Ay Jesús mas sal

 

Jajajaja, ojalá este año se rompa la maldición.

[Carlostone]

Es ahora o nunca.... Ojalá que si....

[contro]

Hace rato la merece pero no ha pasado, por algo estoy preparada para cualquier cosa.

[Realista]

Hace rato la merece pero no ha pasado, por algo estoy preparada para cualquier cosa.

 

Yo también, disfruto el favoritismo pero estoy lejos de estar convencido de que va a ganar. Esto es impredecible, pero al menos sabemos que Pau hizo lo mejor que pude y debemos estar orgullosos.

[ʟoяeﾒ25]

Excelente reportaje!

[Diosa]

Que suelten a paulina no quiero que me la salen

[HAIFA]

Espero que Pau se luzca dd la mejor manera ella tiene con que es muy hermosa e inteligente, y para los que la odian bo se dan cuenta que representa a todos los latinos y además queriendo manchar su nombre diciendo que es mala persona no saben que daño podrían hacerle a esa niña, ademas a uds no les gustaría que cuando tienen una candidata fuerte la dañen asi, en vez de dañarla deberían de apoyarla ya que nos representa muy muy bien, y crean o no cuando una latina gana MU colombia es de los pocos qie apoya a la ganadora y lo reconoce, y su hablan de lo de taliana jajajaja obvio van a pelear por eso pero sucedió lo mismo con RD el año siguiente y quien dice algo, así que apoyen a a todas las latinas les guste o no nos representan bien........................... ok

[tambourine]

LA CUERPA DE LA VIDA, como una verdadero MU.

[Ruth]

Espero que Pau se luzca dd la mejor manera ella tiene con que es muy hermosa e inteligente, y para los que la odian bo se dan cuenta que representa a todos los latinos y además queriendo manchar su nombre diciendo que es mala persona no saben que daño podrían hacerle a esa niña, ademas a uds no les gustaría que cuando tienen una candidata fuerte la dañen asi, en vez de dañarla deberían de apoyarla ya que nos representa muy muy bien, y crean o no cuando una latina gana MU colombia es de los pocos qie apoya a la ganadora y lo reconoce, y su hablan de lo de taliana jajajaja obvio van a pelear por eso pero sucedió lo mismo con RD el año siguiente y quien dice algo, así que apoyen a a todas las latinas les guste o no nos representan bien........................... ok

Esta repitiendo lo mismo en varios temas ya parece spam

[Reigar]

Ojala gane. Es la mas completa. Mi sentimental es mexico ojala ambas queden de manos