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Date Posted: 23:05:08 06/01/04 Tue
Miss Universe to be crowned where North meets South
Tue Jun 1, 2:23 AM ET Add Top Stories - AFP to My Yahoo!
QUITO (AFP) - Eighty nervous beauties will be the center of attention in this Andean nation, where the glitzy Miss Universe (news - web sites) pageant is to take place on the world's dividing line.
AFP Photo
About 500 foreign journalists have flocked to the equator to watch 80 women from all over the globe strut their stuff in front of nine judges tasked with choosing the universe's most beautiful creature.
In the last few days, the curvaceous contestants have competed to be among the 15 finalists who will be named during Tuesday's televised show. An audience of 1.5 billion is expected.
Miss Universe 2004 will be crowned by a celebrity panel that includes singer Paula Abdul, who is already a judge in the popular US show American Idol, and blonde bombshell Bo Derek. The pageant will be hosted by celebrity news reporter Billy Bush and model Daisy Fuentes.
The show is taking place at the Expo Center of the Middle of the World, known here as Cemexpo, about 15 kilometers (nine miles) northeast of the capital Quito.
About 7,600 people have paid up to 250 dollars to attend the flamboyant competition, which is owned by billionaire-turned-reality-television star Donald Trump.
The crowd has already picked its favorite Misses in events taking place since last week.
Miss Ecuador Maria Susana Rivadeneira, Miss Turkey Fatos Segmen and Miss Paraguay Yanina Gonzalez heard the most cheers when the contestants were presented Thursday, organizers said.
Miss Thailand Morakot Kittisara and Miss Mexico Rosalva Luna also emerged as favorites in an Internet survey.
Meanwhile, as she prepares to relinquish her crown, Miss Universe 2003 Amalia Vega, of the Dominican Republic, has been embraced by the Ecuadoran public.
"I love you so much," she has told Ecuadorans on television or in public.
"I will come back to Ecuador as a singer and maybe in about six months I'll bring my first record," said Vega, already planning her post-Miss Universe life.
While the blondes from the United States and Canada, or the brunettes from Colombia or Ecuador readied for the competition, Ecuador polished up its image for visitors.
Tourism officials have brought attention to the country's Galapagos Islands (news - web sites), which are famous for their giant sea turtles, and the mountainous Pacific country's diverse fauna and flora.
Officials predicted the arrival of more than 5,000 tourists who would spend 300 dollars a day.
"This is a great opportunity to show the world that we really are a peaceful people," Ecuadoran President Lucio Gutierrez said last week.
"We were not wrong when we accepted to host this contest," Gutierrez said.
The throng of reporters has written about the Ecuadoran roses sold in the United States and Europe and the diverse community of this country of 12.2 million people. There are 18 indigenous ethnic groups contributing to the economy in agriculture and crafts work.
Natives, who make up 40 percent of the population and are among the 79 percent of Ecuadorans who live in poverty, have also protested their economic plight in an uprising that led to president Jamil Mahuad's ouster in 2000.
While they helped elect Gutierrez in 2002 on a leftist platform, they have since decried his "neo-liberal" economic policies
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