The bikini came to be a wardrobe necessity for women in 1946. It was invented by French engineer Louis Reard and was named as such in reference to the explosive effect of the atomic bomb testing in Bikini Atoll in the Marshalls.. It has come to symbolize sexual revolution in the 1960’s and thus has become part of competitions in beauty pageants. This article reviews the swimsuits used in the Miss Universe Beauty pageant from 2001 till 2011.
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| Miss Universe 2001, Denise Quinones of Puerto Rico and Miss Universe 2002 (dethroned), Oxana Fedorova of Russia |
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| Miss Universe 2003, Amelia Vega of the Dominican Republic and Miss Universe 2004, Jennifer Hawkins of Australia |
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| Miss Universe 2005, Natalie Glebova of Canada |
From 2001 to 2005, the candidates wore a bikini ensemble, 2 red in color, 2 white in color and 1 in aqua marine base color with floweret design. From the way it looked, the bra portion of the ensemble had an underwire. Some call this a push up bra. These types of bras are very helpful most especially to breasts that tend to sag. The underwire allows the breast to have a rounder look. Even small breasts achieve beneficial looks with this type of bra because it does not only allow a rounder look for the breasts but also it creates a deceiving effect to someone looking at the person wearing it. It makes the breasts larger that it measures. Note the bottoms. They are no frills bottoms and it provides great coverage and it stays put in the hips. The bottoms are cut like the tanga exposing the thighs to show seemingly long legs among the contestants. From 2001 to 2004, I noted that the bottoms are just garterized at the waist area. On the other hand, it seemed that in 2005, the bottom showed that there are ties to hold it firm. On 2004, note that the bra area does not only have an underwire but also an overwire. An overwire Is used to achieve a much rounder forms for the breasts while covering an ample amount of it.
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| Miss Universe 2006, Zuleyka Rivera of Puerto Rico and Miss Universe 2007, Riyo Mori of Japan |
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| Miss Universe 2008, Dayana Mendoza of Venezuela and Miss Universe 2009, Stefania Fernandez of Venezuela |
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| Miss Universe 2010, Ximena Navarrete of Mexico |
Years 2006 to 2010 showed a new wave of swimsuits in Miss Universe. Together with the new swimsuits, the candidates showed gutsy attitude in the ramp. In this series, 2006 showed brown designed prints, with 2007 showing white and dark brown prints assuming some kind of animal prints. In 2008, yellow was the color of the swimsuit while in 2009, floral prints came back and in 2010, it was a purple colored bikini ensemble with some glittery accessories. In 2006, the swimsuit showed a soft textile that hugged the breast of the candidate. The bottom needed to have ties to keep it from falling. In 2007, the bikini seemed to be skimpier as well as in 2009. The swim wears in 2008 were more like those seen in sports competition. In 2010, we see a spandex type of swimwear.
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| Miss Universe 2011, Leila Lopes of Angola |
What about 2011? In 2011, the swimwear seemed to have a tribal design. The bikini was so skimpy that it seemed like the bottom is just there to cover the necessary parts. It needed some revisions when most of the candidates complained. The revisions were not enough hence; they needed to put a removable skirt to protect the girls from obnoxious eyes.
It is such a wonder to review previous winners in their swimsuits. It is also a revelation to note that the winning candidates showed great form and countenance during the swimsuit round. While the first part of the 2000’s showed girls to be more docile in the way they traversed the runway, some girls just really outshone the others such as in the case of Oxana Fedorova and Jennifer Hawkins. On other hand, the next half of the decade showed the girls to be in competitive spirits starting from Zuleyka Rivera, followed by Riyo Mori and Dayana Mendoza. During the 2009 and 2010, we saw the muted presentation of Stefania Fernandez and Ximena Navarette. Some pundits say it was such a boring presentation in the swimsuit segment but they did win. It was a muted demeanor but carried with so much class.
What would the next decade be? Would the performance of Leila Lopes be an indication of what is yet to come?
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