User:Mauriziok/Miss Universe 2002

Miss Universe 2002, the 51st Miss Universe pageant, was held on 29 May 2002 at the Coliseo Roberto Clemente in San Juan, Puerto Rico. 75 delegates competed in this year. Oxana Fedorova of Russia was crowned by Denise Quiñones of Puerto Rico as her successor at the end of the event. Fedorova was dethroned four months later and 1st runner-up Justine Pasek of Panama took over the Miss Universe title.

To date, the 2002 pageant is the only time the 1st runner-up has assumed the title when the reigning Miss Universe became incapable of fulfilling her duties, as explained in the disclaimer traditionally read out by hosts before announcing the winner in the live show. The official reason for Fedorova's dethronement has not been disclosed by the Miss Universe Organization. This was the last Miss Universe show to be aired on CBS. Beginning with the next Miss Universe pageant, NBC assumed co-ownership of the pageant along with Donald Trump, and as a result began televising the pageant.

Final Competition Score

 * Winner
 * First Runner-up
 * Second Runner-up
 * Third Runner-up
 * Fourth Runner-up
 * Top 10 Semifinalist
 * (#) Rank in each round of competition

Contestants



 * 🇦🇱 Albania - Anisa Kospiri
 * 🇦🇴 Angola - Giovana Leite
 * 🇦🇬 Antigua and Barbuda - Aisha Ralph
 * 🇦🇼 Aruba - Deyanira Frank
 * 🇦🇺 Australia - Sarah Davies
 * 🇧🇸 Bahamas - Nadia Albury
 * 🇧🇪 Belgium - Ann van Elsen
 * 🇧🇴 Bolivia - Paola Coimbra
 * 🇧🇷 Brazil - Josiane Oliveira
 * British Virgin Islands - Anastasia Tonge
 * 🇧🇬 Bulgaria - Elina Georgieva
 * 🇨🇦 Canada - Neelam Verma
 * 🇰🇾 Cayman Islands - Shannon McLean
 * 🇨🇱 Chile - Nicole Rencoret Ladrón de Guevara
 * 🇨🇳 China - Zhuo Ling
 * 🇨🇴 Colombia - Vanessa Mendoza
 * 🇨🇷 Costa Rica - Merilyn Villalta
 * 🇭🇷 Croatia - Ivana Paris
 * 🇨🇼 Curaçao - Ayanette Statia
 * 🇨🇾 Cyprus - Demetra Eleftheriou
 * 🇨🇿 Czech Republic - Diana Kobzanová
 * 🇩🇴 Dominican Republic - Ruth Ocumárez
 * 🇪🇨 Ecuador - Isabel Ontaneda-Pinto
 * 🇪🇬 Egypt - Sally Shaheen
 * 🇸🇻 El Salvador - Elisa Sandoval
 * 🇪🇪 Estonia - Jana Tafenau
 * 🇫🇮 Finland - Janette Broman
 * 🇫🇷 France - Sylvie Tellier
 * 🇩🇪 Germany - Natascha Börger
 * 🇬🇭 Ghana - Stephanie Walkins-Fia
 * 🇬🇷 Greece - Lena Paparigopoulou
 * 🇬🇹 Guatemala - Carina Velasquez
 * 🇬🇾 Guyana - Mia Rahaman
 * 🇭🇳 Honduras - Erika Ramirez
 * 🇭🇺 Hungary - Edit Friedl
 * 🇮🇳 India - Neha Dhupia
 * 🇮🇪 Ireland - Lisa O'Sullivan
 * 🇮🇱 Israel - Yamit Har-Noy
 * 🇮🇹 Italy - Anna Rigon
 * 🇯🇲 Jamaica - Sanya Hughes
 * 🇯🇵 Japan - Mina Chiba (ja)
 * 🇰🇪 Kenya - Julie Njeru
 * 🇰🇷 South Korea - Kim Min-kyoung
 * 🇲🇾 Malaysia - Karen Lit Eit Ang
 * 🇲🇺 Mauritius - Karen Alexandre
 * 🇲🇽 Mexico - Ericka Cruz
 * 🇳🇦 Namibia - Michelle Heitha
 * 🇳🇱 Netherlands - Kim Kötter - placed 11th
 * 🇳🇮 Nicaragua - Marianela Lacayo
 * 🇳🇬 Nigeria - Chinenye Ochuba
 * Northern Marianas - Virginia Gridley
 * 🇳🇴 Norway - Hege Hatlo
 * 🇵🇦 Panama - Justine Pasek
 * 🇵🇪 Peru - Adriana Zubiate
 * 🇵🇭 Philippines - Karen Loren Agustín
 * 🇵🇱 Poland - Joanna Dozdrowska
 * 🇵🇹 Portugal - Iva Catarina Lamarao
 * 🇵🇷 Puerto Rico - Isis Casalduc
 * 🇷🇺 Russia - Oxana Fedorova
 * 🇸🇬 Singapore - Nuraliza Osman
 * Slovak Republic - Eva Dzodlova
 * 🇸🇮 Slovenia - Iris Mulej
 * 🇿🇦 South Africa - Vanessa Carreira
 * 🇪🇸 Spain - Vania Millan
 * 🇸🇪 Sweden - Malou Hansson
 * 🇨🇭 Switzerland - Jennifer Ann Gerber
 * 🇹🇭 Thailand - Janjira Janchome
 * 🇹🇹 Trinidad and Tobago - Nasma Mohammed
 * 🇹🇷 Turkey - Cagla Kubat
 * 🇺🇦 Ukraine - Liliana Gorova
 * 🇺🇾 Uruguay - Fiorella Fleitas
 * 🇺🇸 USA - Shauntay Hinton
 * US Virgin Islands - Merlisa George
 * 🇻🇪 Venezuela - Cynthia Lander
 * Serbia & Montenegro - Slađana Božović

Debut

 * 🇦🇱 Albania
 * 🇨🇳 China

Returns

 * Last competed in 1995:
 * 🇰🇪 Kenya
 * Last competed in 1999:
 * 🇬🇾 Guyana
 * Last competed in 2000:
 * 🇦🇺 Australia
 * 🇲🇺 Mauritius
 * 🇳🇦 Namibia

Replacements

 * 🇪🇸 Spain - The winner of Miss España 2001 pageant, Lorena Ayala cut all ties with the Miss España organization and lost the right to representing Spain in any international pageant after a threat of lawsuit against the Miss España Organization by her family side due to breaching her contract with the organization, then they replaced her with the new Miss España 2002, Vania Millán by the Miss Universe Organization's request.

Withdrawals

 * 🇦🇷 Argentina - No contest due to the Argentinian economic crisis of 2001.
 * 🇧🇿 Belize - Karen Russell - Lack of Sponsorship, went to Miss World 2002.
 * 🇧🇼 Botswana - No contest until 2004.
 * Great Britain - Yana Booth
 * 🇭🇰 Hong Kong - Shirley Yeung - the Miss Hong Kong pageant lost their Miss Universe licence in 2001 due to lack of interest.
 * 🇱🇧 Lebanon - Christina Sawaya, Miss Lebanon 2001 withdrew because she supported the Second Intifada and started that she couldn't compete with Miss Israel 2002, Yamit Har-Noy at the pageant. She took part at Miss International 2002 in the latter part of the year and won the crown.
 * 🇲🇹 Malta - Loredana Zammit - The Miss Malta organization lost their Miss Universe licence that year.
 * 🇾🇹 Mayotte - Attempted to obtain a MU license. Denied.  Winner of the Miss Mayotte pageant competes in Miss France.
 * 🇳🇿 New Zealand - No contest.
 * 🇵🇾 Paraguay - María Gabriela Riquelme Escuna - The Miss Paraguay organization lost their Miss Universe licence.
 * St. Maarten - Bernice Gumbs - Lack of Sponsorship
 * 🇹🇼 Taiwan - No contest.
 * Turks and Caicos - Euwonka Selver - She was destroned few weeks before leaving for the pageant and the organization didn't remplace her.

Other countries with Miss Universe licence that didn't send delegates that year:
 * 🇧🇧 Barbados - The Pageant was postponed until December.
 * 🇨🇰 Cook Islands - The contest was postponed several times until the Summer.
 * 🇩🇰 Denmark
 * 🇬🇺 Guam
 * 🇮🇸 Iceland - Lack of Sponsorship.
 * 🇲🇿 Mozambique - Lost their Miss Universe licence.
 * Vietnam - The Contest was delayed until the middle of 2003.
 * 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe - The Miss Universe Zimbabwe pageant decided to stop being held due to the current Zimbabwe economic and political crisis since 2000.

Awards

 *  US Virgin Islands - Miss Congeniality (Merlisa George)
 * 🇵🇷 Puerto Rico - Miss Photogenic (Isis Casalduc)
 * 🇨🇴 Colombia - Best National Costume (Vanessa Mendoza)

Other notes

 * The Parade of Nations was conducted outdoors in the streets of Old San Juan for the first time and the delegates all wore their national costumes and presented in alphabetical order. This format of the parade would continue until 2005, although from 2003 to 2005, the delegates did not wear their national costumes during the parade.
 * Josiane Oliveira of Brazil was dethroned after Big Brother Brasil. The local organization discovered that she was married. The 2002 Miss Brazil 1st runner-up took over the title just two months before passing the crown to her successor.