The Hindu : Front Page : And the title goes to... Miss Iceland

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, Dec 11, 2005

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And the title goes to... Miss Iceland

Unnur Birna Vilhjalmsdottir, a police officer, crowned Miss World

SANYA (China): Miss Iceland, Unnur Birna Vilhjalmsdottir, a part-time police officer who wants to be a lawyer, was crowned Miss World 2005 on Saturday.

Miss Mexico, Dafne Molina Lona, was the first runner-up, and Miss Puerto Rico, Ingrid Marie Rivera Santos, was second runner-up in a field of 102 women in the contest in this southern China beach resort.

Ms. Vilhjalmsdottir, 21, a part-time airport police officer, is studying anthropology and law. She was born in her country's capital, Reykjavik, and enjoys hiking, camping and playing the piano.

She said her motto is, "You are what you do."

For charity and children

``It was wonderful, so wonderful. It has been an amazing night. I did not think that I would win, it was a big surprise,'' said the five-foot eight inch beauty.

``In the coming year I want to do just as much as I can to help. I would love to do what I can do for charity and for the children of the world.

``I want to thank all the other girls. Thank you for the wonderful five weeks here in Sanya, China, it has just been so wonderful. I made a lot of friends here who will stay friends forever.''

Miss Mexico is a 23-year-old model from Mexico City who wants to be an interior designer. She enjoys riding horses, listening to jazz and reading. She told the audience: "My friends tell me, through my eyes, they see a good heart." Molina Lona said her favorite saying is, "With strength and enthusiasm I will make things happen."

Miss Puerto Rico is a part-time model who studies marketing and finance at the University of Puerto Rico. The 22-year-old woman said she hoped to have her own business and become an actress. She told the audience: "I would love to spend time with all the people that helped this dream come true."

The six finalists included Miss South Korea, Oh Eun-young, 20, who was born and raised in Seoul and wants to be a fashion designer. Miss Italy, Sofia Bruscoli, 17, a model and European skate dancing champion, also made the final round, along with Tanzania's Nancy Abraham Sumary, a 19-year-old who wants to be a lawyer. Sumary said her motto is: "Aim for the star, so if you land on the clouds, it is just as good a cushion."

Miss India, Sindhura Gadde, who entered the semi-finals, lost to Eun-Yong Oh of South Korea in the contest for selection from the Asia-Pacific region.

New voting system

This year the organisers said they had introduced an ``innovative'' new voting system; each contestant was allocated a number for worldwide short messaging service (SMS) voting or via the Voting Hotline in their particular country.

AP, PTI

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