The Econocrisis hits Miss Venezuela

The economic crisis is proving more resilient than initially thought. After going through L and W, it is now at letter V, from Venezuela.

In short, as Reuters writes, the local "Miss Venezuela" organization -- which has landed the South American nation more international pageant titles than any other country -- announced on Wednesday it had slashed the number of national competitors to 20 from 30.

"We have had to tighten our belt a bit too," said Joaquin Riviera, organizer of the annual Miss Venezuela competition, which is wildly popular and draws huge TV audiences.

The next national winner will be chosen on September 24.

"I've asked Osmel to be a bit stricter choosing 20 girls, so we only have the best," Riviera added, referring to local beauty "czar" Osmel Sousa, who prepares the competitors.

Sousa denied the cuts, however, would mean fewer dresses or less plastic surgery for girls competing. Venezuela has one of the highest rates of cosmetic surgery in the world.

Venezuela's Stefania Fernandez, an 18-year-old brunette, won the Miss Universe 2009 title last month in the Bahamas, giving her country its second win in a row and its sixth in that pageant's history.

According to wikipedia,

Venezuela is well-known for its successions in beauty pageants. Miss Venezuela is a big event in the country, and Venezuela has received 5 Miss World, 6 Miss Universe and 5 Miss International titles.

The World Values Survey has consistently shown Venezuelans to be among the happiest people in the world, with 55% of those questioned saying they were "very happy".

How important the pageant is to the national spirit and that feeling of happiness can be ascertained from the tenacity displayed by the contestants:

Thousands of entrants apply for the pageant each year. Some young women would try for up to five or six years consecutively trying to get one of the 26 to 32 titles that will enable them to compete in the final pageant. Venezuela's 23 states, capital, and two regions of Zulia state are always represented; some years other regions of the country will have representatives in the pageant.

Once a candidate is shortlisted for the pageant, she begins an intensive training program which can last for six months. She receives coaching in speech, physical fitness, make-up, modelling, and all the other skills required for the competition. Plastic surgery and cosmetic dentistry is optional and some delegates use padding. As the Miss Venezuela broadcast lasts up to four hours long, with countless musical numbers and dances, rehearsals require weeks of preparation. Contestants also participate in official photoshoots (lately done by Iván Dumont, after several years by Daniel Alonso) and also fittings by fashion designers. The evening gowns worn by candidates are a major source of politicking by Venezuela's domestic fashion houses, with top designers such as Mayela Camacho, Ángel Sanchez, Durant & Diego, and Jose María Almeida selecting candidates that they will dress for the final night, while other, newer designers compete to present designs for the pageant. As a general rule the evening gowns are always custom-designed for each of the candidates on the final night, and always by a Venezuelan designer. (…) The winners chosen to represent Venezuela in the major pageants undergo continuous preparation before they compete internationally. These efforts are funded by corporate sponsors like Pepsi Cola, Palmolive, Colgate, Ebel and Lux who were attracted to the pageant by its high ratings.

Competing in the pageant can get a contestant noticed and launched on a successful television or print career. At least a dozen well sought models come out of the pageant. Virtually all of Venezuela's female top models and television personalities are alumni of the pageant, including Maite Delgado (who competed in 1986 against future Miss Universe Bárbara Palacios, Alexandra Braun (Miss Earth 2005) and Dominika van Santen (Top Model of the World 2005)

There. Now ye know.

Sources / More info: Reuters-Ms-Venezuela, wiki-venezuela

OhIHt, miss, beauty, crisis, cutbacks, austerity, cuts