The FINANCIAL — The finals of the beauty contest revealed 18 year-old Khatuna Skhirtladze as Miss Georgia 2008. The jury chose Khatuna to represent Georgia at the Miss World contest in Kiev on October 4. Runner-up Lika Orjonikidze takes on the task of battling it out for Miss Universe, and the third place winner – Kristine Dzidziguri will compete for the crown of Miss Tourism International.
Last year Miss World was from China, the People’s Republic of – Zhang Zi Lin.
The organization of the event is Image Centre. The latter has an exclusive right to represent Georgia at Miss Universe, Miss World and Miss Tourism beauty contests.
According to Image Centre, the company has no competitors on the local market as this agency is developed in various directions. Image Centre represents Elite Model Look Georgia in Georgia. The company has the experience of having organized Miss Georgia for the past 6 years. Image Centre holds the license of the two biggest competitions Miss World and Miss Universe, also Miss Tourism International and Miss Intercontinental.
“Miss Georgia is far more profitable for the agency, but only if we manage to make sponsors interested in the project. Finding sponsors in Georgia is one of the most difficult challenges to take. Event management is developing now and supposedly will expand soon. Miss Georgia is a long term project as it takes at least 6 months to get ready. However this project is becoming more and more popular every year,” says the company.
Since 2003 this has been the sixth Miss Georgia contest and it is has become more popular amongst the Georgian population. Almost all the cities and regions are involved in this event (Tbilisi, Batumi, Kutaisi, Gori, Rustavi, Zugdidi, Poti, Ozurgeti, Lagodekhi, Telavi, Borjomi).
The parameters of the most beautiful girl in Georgia are: height – 177cm; body measurements – 84 – 61 – 89.
The contest was held on July 27 at Batumi Drama theatre.
22 girls from different regions of the country participated in Miss Georgia 2008. 13 contestants were from Tbilisi; none from Georgia’s conflict zones of South Ossetia or Abkhazia.
Miss Georgia was awarded with an automobile Peugeot 207 from Iberia Motors.
Girls of ages ranging from 17 to 25 years longed to become the proud holders of the Miss Georgia title.
The contestants gave their best attempts at looking like beauty queens as they modelled modest swimsuits, casual wear and evening dresses.
For the first time one woman was chosen as Miss Internet through online polling, while votes cast by SMS for GEL 1 went to picking Miss People’s Choice. Pageant organizers said they would donate those revenues to a children’s orphanage near Batumi in Makhinjauri.
Miss Internet went to Tatia Donadze from Tbilisi. The perspicacious judges also named her Miss Talent.
Georgia’s most successful contestant abroad was Miss Georgia 2003 Irina Onashvili, who was named Miss Talent for her singing in that year’s Miss World.
The model agency Image Centre selected twenty-two young women this year for Miss Georgia 2008, 300 participants took part in the selection. The Georgian beauties were trained during the one-month preparatory period, first in Tbilisi and later in Batumi.
Participants of the competition Miss Georgia must meet the following requirements: they must be a citizen of Georgia, aged between 17 and 24, height from 168 cm and not married.
In 2003, Georgia for the first time took part in the annual international beauty competition Miss World, where only one of the world’s most beautiful girls is awarded the Miss World Title.
Organizers of Miss Georgia 2003 were Model Agency Image Centre, Broadcasting Company Rustavi 2 and Advertisement Company Imperial.
Miss Georgia 2003 travelled to the city Sanya, China to participate in Miss World 2003. She was 19 year old Irina Onashvili, who was presented with a flat from Building Company Arci and an automobile Mercedes from Company Canargo Standard Oil. Irina was named Miss Talent for her singing in Miss World 2003.
Runner up Miss Georgia 2003 Nino Murtazashvili took part in the International Competition Miss Universe, where she was granted the people’s and organizers’ sympathy.
Miss Georgia 2004 was Salome Chikviladze. She went to Miss World 2004 and Miss Tourism International 2004.
Miss Georgia 2005 Salome Khelashvili took part in Miss World 2005.
Miss Georgia 2006 was Ana Kalandadze who went to the international competition Miss World.
Winning a beauty contest is the dream of many young girls. And last summer it became a reality for 18 year old Nino Likuchova., although she turned out to be a Mrs.
This year’s competition is so far without scandal, a break from the year 2007 when contest winner Nino Likuchova said she was bride kidnapped after marriage records revealed she wasn’t a Miss at all.
Runner up 20 year old Nino Lekveishvili was slated to take the crown, but it turned out that she too had been married. This was a big scandal in Georgia.
This farcical turn of events caught the organizers totally off guard. They were called incompetent for failing to check the contestant’s histories.
Written By Sopho Kheladze
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