Miss Universe 2011 Drama: Miss France Criticizes Winner, Miss Angola

On Monday night, the world was a joyful place full of smiles and rainbows when Leila Lopes, Miss Angola, was crowned Miss Universe 2011 with all the requisite tears and confetti.

But of course it couldn't last.

After the pageant Premiere.fr, a French magazine, chatted with Miss France, Laury Thilleman, who was a Top 10 finalist. Thilleman said lots of positive things about making it to the final rounds, but also threw in some less-than-positive details about the ultimate winner, Lopes.

Of Miss Angola, Thilleman said, "She's the only girl I did not know too well. We did not see her much, she was very discreet. She was often in jeans and no makeup" (a high crime on the pageant circuit, we're sure).

Thilleman also added, "We were all surprised by her victory. Many girls efforts have been made which have not been rewarded."

She also added a strange statement connecting the win for Angola, a former Portuguese colony, with the pageant's location in Brazil, also a former Portuguese colony. As reported by the Washington Post, the implication seems to be that the contest being held in Brazil gave Miss Angola an edge

To which we say: good thing there wasn't a logic portion of the beauty competition.

Test out your French skills with the original article in Premiere.fr or read the Washington Post's take on the drama.

For pictures from the competition and Lopes' big win, check out the slideshow below!

Comments

[Cynthia Davis]

11:36 AM on 10/11/2011

Of course, she deserved to win!!! Sick of sore losers!!!! She is beautiful and was the best spoken of all the candidates. So she walked around with jeans and no makeup, so what? We cheered when she won!!!!

[Msichana Mrefu]

06:13 PM on 10/05/2011

she is stunning

[Allan Torion Pitogo]

01:41 PM on 09/21/2011

Miss Angola, Leila Lopes, is not the most beautiful, the most intelligent, neither the best in gown nor the best in swimsuit, yet she won. She won because of her easily prepared answer to that oft repeated question. Her rejoinder has the greatest impact to the world especially on the controversila issue of racism. The Miss Universe beauty pageant could not have 600 million viewers if all black constestants boycotted on issue of racism. USA produced the 1st black Miss Universe in 1995 in the person of Chelsi Smith. Since then, the partcipation of African countries and colored skin contestants had increased. Selecting Miss Angola as the winner is both a matter of survival of the Miss Universe pageant and putting a period on the issue of racism. Judging is very difficult as there is no standard "meter stick" to measure who is the winner. Maybe, in the near future, the computer will do the judging and each one has to take IQ test before being declared as Miss Universe. In every competition there is what many called luck. In fact from the words of the man with great wisdom, King Solomon. He said, "I have seen something else under the sun: The race is not to the swift or the battle to the strong, nor does food come to the wise or wealth to the brilliant or favor to the learned; but time and chance happen to them all."Ecclesiastes 9:11

[Party-of-many]

12:03 PM on 09/30/2011

Your ignorance is stunning....the first black Miss Universe was Miss Trinidad and Tobago back in 1977..Janelle Commissiong. That was 18 years before Chelsi Smith who is bi-racial (half white and half black). In addition, it is clear that you have a problem with Miss Angola winning and with the concept of black beauty. In addition, you obviously don't understand how the pageant is judged and what the judges look for. The girl who wins is not often the prettiest as defined by you which I am sure is the European standard of being pretty. In 2007, Miss Japan won and that was a shocker since she would not have met the European standard of beauty. Going into the contest, Vivica Fox said in an interview that the woman who wins must not only look good in a swimsuit or evening gown but must have that je ne sais quoi....in other words, she must have that quality that distinguishes her from the rest pretty faces. I don't always agree with the judges decision but at the end of the day, you win some and you lose some. You, like most of the Filipinos on this site, need to get over it and grow up and the sooner, the better because all these negative comments are doing is to cause many people to rethink our view of you all as a people.

[Party-of-many]

11:12 PM on 09/30/2011

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gq6jN2C51aQ&feature=related

Please watch this report and listen to the comments of one of the judges as to what she is looking for in the winner. This will educate many people who seem not to understand that there is an X factor that goes into the judges decision now that it is a matter of final votes after the final look which decides who wins, as opposed to raw scores. This explains why for example, in 2007, Miss Japan won over Miss Brazil, who was much prettier in the European/western standard than her. In the 1990s, it was a matter of scores especially if there were a tie. This is why Wendy Fitzwilliam of Trinidad and Tobago beat out Miss Venezuela. Back then, especially where there was a tie, and in that case there was because there were only 8 judges instead of 9, Wendy's higher preliminary scores were factored in and she won. Luck plays a role in these things and sometimes you win and sometimes you lose. Miss Angola has more grace, stage presence and sophisticated and the judges saw that. Miss Lea Solanga even said in the press that the majority of the judges voted for Miss Angola to win but she placed Shamcey as first runner-up. Time to accept that we don't always get what we desire and sometimes others do. Next year will soon be here and let the games begin again.

[charveyg]

09:39 PM on 10/02/2011

philipines are not known for their beauty. maybe cheap sex but beauty um um NO! short,flat,round,big nose+ignorance,sneaky=filipino/a

[Allan Torion Pitogo]

04:57 AM on 10/05/2011

Yes Filipinos are not know for their beauty but Miss Universe is not selecting the country with the most number of good-looking people. If Philippines is like that, how much more to Angola and other countries. Literacy rate in the Philippines is higher than other 106 countries. I can't accept we are ignorant. If you can come to our country, I will give you the best amenities so that you will experience our unique hospitality. There will be cheap sex but chances of contracting HIV is small. Of the 94 million Filipinos, only less than 3000 people has HIV/AIDS. God bless you and may God prosper you physically, intellectually & spiritually.

[Divine thought]

10:19 PM on 09/17/2011

HATERS! Not surprised the French contestant would find fault with a BLACK Miss Universe. I'm sure she feels blacks are beneath her and sholud not be allowed the opportunity to excel this particular forum. She won and she earned the win. Get over yourself. Black women are beautiful, intelligent and capable.

[Aitch5]

09:10 PM on 09/17/2011

I guess non "bikini=bodies" need not apply.

[kooldalai]

07:27 PM on 09/17/2011

I was only able to catch the last 15-20 minutes of the pageant but as soon as I saw Miss Angola, I told my mom she was gonna win. When she walked out in that gown....that was all she wrote. She has the x-factor and people loved her. Miss France is just ate sour grapes.

[Frank A Hilario]

05:53 PM on 09/17/2011

If you read carefully the question for and the answer of Miss Angola, you will find 1 grammatical error ("very well satisfied" should be "very much satisfied") and 3 logical (the 2nd, 3rd and 4th sentences of her reply do not concern "physical characteristics" at all! These should have been considered errors, and should have eliminated her outright. What happened was that Miss Angola was rewarded the crown for her mistakes!

[kooldalai]

07:30 PM on 09/17/2011

So what! Miss France still would not have won....Miss Angola deserved to win. Get over it!

[charveyg]

11:45 PM on 09/20/2011

Silly. If you were asked what day would you like to die I guess you would gladly but stupidly shout friday. Or if you were actually intelligent you would be more reflective and say no I want to live. This is what the young woman did, She was reflective. something many beauty squares lack.

[Godiva]

02:55 PM on 09/17/2011

Slide number 5 tells a story. Look at the expression on Miss Sweden's face. What a bunch of phony haters.

[ArChiMi]

05:23 PM on 09/17/2011

I laughed so hard after seeing that!

[applesNpears]

01:56 PM on 09/17/2011

"She was often in jeans and no makeup" This actually makes me love her even more. She is stunning. The loser from France reaching for reasons to bash greatness reminds me of the Republican party when they lost to then Senator Obama. Hopefully media won't go out their way to push the loser's pressed meme like our MSM does.

[Red45]

12:44 PM on 09/17/2011

Sounds like sour grapes and jealousy to me. The new Miss Universe is beautiful!

[Morena]

10:01 AM on 09/17/2011

"She's the only girl I did not know too well. She was often in jeans and no makeup"

SCANDALOUS!!

[Eric Ehrmann]

09:44 AM on 09/17/2011

Considering the stories that are emerging to sully the reputation of Leila Lopes one might want to raise the question of whether the firestorm represents road rage by northern, primarily caucasian nations has to do with language, race and color. Three of the top 10 candidates were from Lusophone nations, Angola, Brazil and Portugal (portuguese speaking), a language group of around 250 million, rooted in old Latin. Those who watched the voting on TV might have noted that Miss Brasil and Miss Angola were holding hands when the results were announced...

The Daily Mail in London is now buzzing up a story out of Argentina that Leila used fake documents http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2038048/Miss-Angolas-victory-questioned-false-documents-got-entry-pageant.html

What's next. Images of Leila, faked or maybe real and photoshopped, putting her in the Vanessa Williams territory of posing nude. Vanessa, for memories beyond the Twetstream, abdicated her Miss America role after being tagged in revealing photos.

Portuguese was the language and culture of the navigators who proved the earth was round. Now Friedmanization (Tom and Uncle Miltie the economist) is making the earth flat again. Nobel Laureate Ralph Bunche said the 21st century would be all about culture. This flap is one more reason why.

[Red45]

12:46 PM on 09/17/2011

"Those who watched the voting on TV might have noted that Miss Brasil and Miss Angola were holding hands when the results were announced.­.."  That's what all beauty contest contestants do right before the winner is announced---hold hands and hold their breath. Nothing new about it and it has no particular meaning in the context of this story.

[Beto Andrade]

04:57 PM on 09/17/2011

It does have meaning in the context of this story because both women are from the same culture and language group, different than the other finalists,, French, who sell a lot of cosmetics thanks to the Miss Universe pageant, Ukraine, where football icon Oleg Blokhin makes racial comments and people love it, Did you see other finalists who were holding hand. Can you point them out.

[audivilliers]

08:43 AM on 09/17/2011

she is cute

[Knothare1230]

06:22 AM on 09/17/2011

": good thing there wasn't a logic portion of the beauty competition."
LoL. True but honestly I don't think anyone is surprised. I mean what in the world would " Many girls efforts have been made which have not been rewarded." mean? They all do the same thing. Did one split an atom?

[butchcliff]

06:08 AM on 09/17/2011

Just a sore loser.