Miss World

The Miss World pageant is the oldest surviving major international beauty pageant. It was created in the United Kingdom by Eric Morley in 1951. Since his death in 2000, Morley's wife, Julia Morley, co-chairs the pageant. 

Alongside its rival Miss Universe and Miss Earth contests, this pageant is one of the most publicised beauty contests in the world. 

Miss World
Logo of the Miss World event.
Formation	1951
Type	Beauty Pageant
Headquarters	London
Location	United Kingdom
President	Julia Morley
Key people	Eric Morley
Website	Official website

The winner spends a year travelling to represent the Miss World Organization and its various causes.Traditionally, Miss World lives in London during her reign. The current Miss World is Ksenia Sukhinova of Russia.

Criteria

Contestants must fulfill a number of entry requirements to participate in the national contests. These requirements vary from country and can vary from a simple age criteria^[20], or no criminal record, education, not haven giving birth, moral character^[21] to height, language and religion^[22]

Best Performances by Country

Map of Miss World-winning countries as of 2008.

As of 2008:

Titles	Country
5	India, Venezuela
4	United Kingdom
3	Iceland, Jamaica and Sweden
2	Argentina, Australia, Austria, Netherlands, Peru, Russia, South Africa, United States
1	Bermuda, Brazil, China, Czech Republic, Dominican Republic, Egypt, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Grenada, Guam, Ireland, Israel, Nigeria, Poland, Puerto Rico, Trinidad and Tobago,Turkey

By Number of Wins

Country/Territory	Titles	Winning years
India	5	1966, 1994, 1997, 1999, 2000
Venezuela		1955, 1981, 1984, 1991, 1995

Pageant Controversies

The Miss World pageant has been the target of many controversies since its inception.

• In 1970, feminist protesters threw flour bombs during the live event at London's Royal Albert Hall, momentarily scaring the host, Bob Hope.

• In 1973, Marjorie Wallace, the first American to win the title was forced to relinquish the title 104 days into her reign. Pageant officials stated that Ms. Wallace "had failed to fulfill the basic requirements of the job." The responsibilities and duties not the title have been offered to the 1st runner-up and was turned down by Evangeline Pascual of the Philippines.

• The 1974 winner Helen Morgan representing the United Kingdom was forced to resign four days later after it was discovered she was a single mother.
• In 1976, several countries went on a boycott, because the pageant included both a Caucasian and African representative for South Africa.^[26] In yet another shut-out for the nation for its apartheid policy, South Africa competed for the last time in 1977, before it was welcomed back in 1991 as that policy disintegrated.
• The 1980 winner Gabriella Brum of Germany resigned one day after winning, initially claiming her boyfriend disapproved. A few days later it emerged that she had been forced to resign after it was discovered that she posed naked for a magazine.^[28]
• In 1996, wide-scale protests took place in Bangalore, India over the hosting of the beauty contest. The swimsuit shootings were moved to Seychelles, and heavy security was placed. Despite the chaos, the pageant's live telecast went on smoothly.
• Just days after her 1998 crowning, Israel's Linor Abargil revealed that she had been raped only two months before the pageant. The man accused of raping her was later convicted.