| Subject: What the newspapers say! |
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Trini77
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Date Posted: Sunday, December 02, 09:26:49am
Author Host/IP: cpe-66-65-2-158.nyc.res.rr.com/66.65.2.158
Newsday newspapers (had the best local coverage of MW over the month of activities)
Front Cover Photo
Valene in Miss World top 5
Sunday, December 2 2007
Miss Trinidad and Tobago 21-year-old Valene Maharaj placed in the top five of the Miss World beauty pageant held in China, yesterday. Television coverage showed a small contingent of Trinidad and Tobago supporters – including Valene’s mother – waving this country’s national flag. Valene greeted the audience in Chinese. She spoke about her work in the field of AIDS, “this is what beauty with a purpose is,” she added.
Reached by phone in China yesterday, Valene was ecstatic. “I am very proud,” she told Sunday Newsday, and her dress designer Bobby Ackbarali speaking from his hotel room in Sanya, China, said that the TT contingent in China was in a festive mood.
“The Trini Posse in the audience was waving in the audience to cheer her on.”
Miss China Zhang Zhi Li, 23, went on to eventually win the crown at the 57th edition of the Miss World beauty pageant which was held in her home country.
Zhi Li, a pre-contest favourite, was crowned Miss World 2007 much to the delight of the audience in front of an estimated two billion viewers around the globe.
The secretary from Beijing was the pre-contest favourite with British bookmakers along with Miss Dominican Republic. Miss Angola was first runner up and Miss Mexico second runner up. Bookies placed Miss Trinidad and Tobago at number 19 in odds to win the contest. At the questioning session Valene was calm and comfortable and waved to her mother in the audience.
Contestants were judged on an array of disciplines including physical fitness, style, dress, personality and beauty.
The 106 was whittled down to 16, then five, with hotly tipped Miss Dominican Republic not making the final five. Though Maharaj did not cop the crown, she did beat out 101 other beauties from around the world to make it to the intense final round of the competition.
Ackbarali praised Maharaj’s performance. “We are so proud of her. She was in the top five and came out on top of all the other Caribbean girls. That’s almost unbelievable, but I knew she would be a winner right away because she was also very disciplined and focused. She did a great job representing our country.” He joked, “Her mother and sister and Alyson Brown had our own Trini Posse waving in the audience to cheer her on. Now we have our own coronation ball going on to celebrate.”
Ackbarali was commissioned by Elias to design the iridescent, icy ocean blue gown Maharaj wore in the evening gown competition. He described the dress saying, “Valene wanted to look very Caribbean and I wanted to capture her soft personality, so the dress was created out of flowing lengths of chiffon and beaded in Swarovski crystals to match the Miss World crown.
That’s how confident we were.” Ackbarali added that he was thrilled to be a part of the Miss World team. “I am happy to be on board with this talented group of people. TT certainly showed the world that we have what it takes to make a Miss World.”
Elias was ecstatic about how well she represented TT overseas. “I thought she was wonderful. As far as I’m concerned, she won the show.
She did a magnificent job in promoting Trinidad and Tobago at Miss World. She placed in the top five and I’m so proud. She was phenomenal.”
Maharaj is originally from Gasparillo, but grew up in St Margaret’s with her four other siblings. Maharaj holds an Associate Degree in Business Administration from Roytec and last year was accepted to the American InterContinental University in Florida to pursue studies in Fashion, Fine Arts and Marketing. However, she chose to defer her studies to follow her dreams and fulfill her role as a representative of Trinidad and Tobago.
Her modelling career started at the age of 16 when she won the Caribbean Model Search. That title gave her the opportunity to travel in and outside of the region to pursue her career. She has modelled at Jamaica’s Caribbean Fashion Week, been the poster girl for advertising campaigns for Micles clothing, worked with chic local fashion designers like Peter Elias and Meiling as well as being photographed by TT’s most sought after photographer Calvin French.
After being crowned Miss TT World on May 20, Maharaj, experienced a whirlwind training from an expert team consisting of Person-ality Development Coach Adrian Raymond, Stage Performance Spe-cialist Alyson Brown, wardrobe designer Bobby Ackbarali and Fashion Stylist Peter Elias.
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Trinidad Express
Front page photo
Article:
CARIBBEAN QUEEN
Valene Maharaj places 4th in Miss World
Kristy Ramnarine kramnarine@trinidadexpress.com
Sunday, December 2nd 2007
(Photo caption)THAT'S OUR GIRL: Trinidad and Tobago's Valene Maharaj, centre, sportingly cheers Miss China, Zhang Zhi Li, right, at the beauty crown cultural centre in Sanya, Hainan, China, yesterday after Li was declared winner for the Miss World 2007 beauty contest. Maharaj placed fourth in the competition among 105 beauties. At left is Annie Oliv of Sweden.
Exrpress article:
Valene Maharaj was crowned Queen of the Caribbean shortly after winning the third runner-up spot in the Miss World 2007 competition in Sanya, China yesterday evoking memories of the world-wide hit "Caribbean Queen", written by Trinidadian Keith Diamond and sung by his compatriot Billy Ocean.
The Miss World competition which was contested by 106 young talented women, was won by Zi Lin Zhang of the People's Republic of China, with Angola's Micaela Reis taking the first runner-up spot and Mexico's Carolina Moran Gordillo coming in as second runner-up.
Maharaj sounded ecstatic during a telephone interview from the Crowne Plaza Hotel Sanya, China, where she is staying.
"It's been a great experience, I enjoyed every minute of it," she told the Sunday Express.
"My heart was beginning to drop on the floor when the finalists were being called and the last two spots remained. Then my name was called and I was like, thank you God."
Maharaj's name was the fourth to be called when the finalists were announced. The order was Angola, China, Mexico, Trinidad and Tobago then Sweden. Minutes earlier she had made it to the top 16 finalists, which included Angola, Australia, China, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Grenada, Ghana, Hong Kong, Jamaica, Malaysia, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Sweden, USA and Venezuela.
"I am so happy to be here. I am thanking God every second," she said to host- Chinese TV presenter, Angela Chow.
Then when asked to tell the judges and audience something about herself they did not already know, a confident Maharaj said: "It has been an amazing experience. Seeing all the work that the Miss World organisation does has inspired me to do more charity work in my country and the region. And I think all of us should support the charity work and beauty with a purpose. That is what Miss World stands for."
Maharaj, who is a runway fashion model, has been active in the business since she was 16. Her modelling career started when she won the Caribbean Model Search, which took her to Jamaica in 2003 for Jamaica's Fashion Week. Since then she's done advertising campaigns for Micles and modelled in shows for local designers such as Peter Elias and Meiling. She is also a member of the Carnival band Tribe.
The 21-year-old won the local leg of the Miss World competition which was sponsored by the Tourism Development Compnay (TDC) in May this year at the Zen nightclub in Port of Spain.
Miss World national director Peter Elias of Peter Elias and Associates said he was very happy with Maharaj's performance.
"Trinidad and Tobago got a lot of publicity and achieved a lot during the pageant," he said.
"Working with Valene was fantastic. She is a decent hard-working girl who gave us 100 per cent."
Maharaj was accompanied to China by her mother Sumintraj, pageant company associate/performance specialist Alyson Brown and pageant guru and designer Bobby Ackbarali. She thanks all of them, as well as Peter Elias and Adrian Raymond, for their support throughout her journey.
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O.K. I could choke the people over at the Guardian newspapers (only kidding but yuh know what I mean)-they have no front cover with Valene and in their article they say Valene placed 5th. With respect to the front page pics, hats off to the Trinidad Express for giving Valene the entire front page-yes Newsday had the most pics over the month but could they at least have a heart and not always have to put some gruesome crime on the front page-can T&T nationals at least breathe easy for one day when they look at the front page of our newspapers?
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