2001 was another banner year for Canadians in the pageant world. Our country saw many successful competitors represent our flag with pride, honour and distinction.
In times when specific dates of events or happenings are not known, but the month is available, these events are listed under the last calendar day of each month. Please also note that this is, by no means, an exhaustive list of all the events that took place in Canada this year. Most notably in Alberta and Newfoundland, several additional, well-received events took place.
Let’s take a look back at some of the highlights…
Be sure to take a look at the JPP Awards for 2001 after the timeline!
JANUARY
Jan. 20 – Vancouver’s Bernice Liu won the Miss
Chinese International Pageant in Hong Kong, marking the fourth victory for a
Canadian in this prestigious international contest. Not to be overlooked was
the achievement of Jennifer Huang from Montréal – she
finished as first runner-up! Never before had Canadians finished one-two in
this contest. Also competing in the contest was Cissy Wong, who
represented Toronto. The contest has been a launching board for many young
woman to enter the high-profile and lucrative Hong Kong film industry. That’s Jennifer on the left, Bernice in the middle.
Jan. 31 – Danielle Keenan was named Miss Teen Tourism
Canada following on-line voting and interview segments. She was later given the
title of Miss Model of the World Canada when the international pageant did not
take place this year. Pageant vet and producer Viktorija Kujundzik was
awarded the title of Miss Tourism Canada, and was to compete at the
international finals in Cyprus, but was not able to attend. No replacement was
sent.
Jan. 31 – Juliette Powell, Miss Canada 1989,
officially gave up her post this month as host of MuchMusic’s “Electric
Circus”, in order to start a position as a news anchor on the Toronto news
station CP 24. She still continues to host and produce “French Kiss” on Much.
FEBRUARY
Feb. 16 – Pageant veteran Michelle Weswaldi of
Toronto was crowned Miss Intercontinental Canada at a live show at the
Casino Lounge in Toronto. First runner-up was Melissa Leifer and finishing
third was Natasha Vassell, a former runner-up at Miss Caribbean Canada
and semi-finalist at CSMU 2001.
Feb. 23 – Knocking the judges’ socks off at the Casino
Lounge was Niko Sofianos of Thornhill, Ont. who won the Mr.
Intercontinental Canada pageant. First runner-up was Brett Atamanyk
of Welland, Ont., and second runner-up was Michael Sumbler of
Mississauga, who has competed with distinction at other male pageants.
Feb. 25 – University student Natalie Langor won the Miss
Teen Newfoundland & Labrador title in St. John’s. She was to advance to
the Miss Teen Millennium Pageant, but as she turned eighteen prior to the
final, she was “bumped up” to compete in the Miss division of the same contest.
First runner-up Stephanie Brennan was named the province’s
representative in Miss Teen Millennium. The second runner-up in the show was Jennifer
Button, and the third runner-up was Melissa Smith. Thirty-six teens
from across the province competed for the coveted title, where pageant fan and
friend Samuel Blanchard was among the judges.
Feb. 28 – 5’10 ½” Gurdeep Dhaliwal literally topped
the field and won the title of Miss Calgary, earning the right to
represent her city in CSMU 2002. First runner-up Donna Sawchyn won the
right to represent the the Stampede City at the Miss Oktoberfest Pageant. The
second runner-up was Christine Birkbeck.
Feb. 28 – Former Miss India Canada finalist Monita Rajpal left her post as an on-air anchor at CITY TV in Toronto for a new position in front of the world – on CNN. She is now based in Atlanta, and can often be seen in the early morning hours as a presenter.
MARCH
March 10 – After living through harassment from her fellow
contestants and questions from pageant and government officials about her
residency, American Cristina Fandino was finally allowed to compete in
the Binibining Pilipinas Pageant in Quezon City, Philippines, where she
finished as a semi-finalist. Cristina was crowned Binibining Pilipinas of the
World 1999 in Toronto.
March 18 – Angeliki Lakouras, Miss International
Canada 2000, and Kim Yee, Miss Canadian Universe 2000, are among the
nominees for the third-annual Global Beauties’ awards (known as the Yulias).
Kim was nominated for Best in Gown and finished second for Best Interview,
while Angeliki was a finalist for Miss Photogenic, as well as Best Interview.
All four nominations were in the Americas category. Kim was also named one of
the fifty most beautiful pageant contestants of the year 2000.
March 11-18 – Miss Canadian Universe, Cristina Remond,
was in Puerto Rico for the second annual Pasarela fashion event. The week of
festivities included city tours and meetings with dignitaries, and culminated
with a live television show broadcast across Puerto Rico. Upwards of fifteen
delegates from across the Caribbean and Central and North America participated.
March 31 – Ruby Johal of B.C. represented Canada at
the Mrs. Globe Pageant in California.
APRIL
April 15 – Jimmy Steele’s “Miss Canada Chronicles” debuted on the Pageant News Bureau. It was described by PNB as “an informative, irreverent but affectionate look at a pageant that a vast nation took to its heart”. I had a blast writing it, too. Though never credited, Donald West provided several of the photos found on the site.
April 28 – Véronique Duguay of Ste-Marie/St-Raphaël won the
Miss New Brunswick International Pageant, while Jeannie Ferguson of
Tracadie took top honours in the Teen category. Both competed with distinction
at the Miss Canada International Pageant (see July for a full report).
MAY
May 12 – Cristina Remond represented Canada at the
Miss Universe Pageant in Bayamon, Puerto Rico. The “Montréal Gazette” gave
daily reports on Cristina’s participation, with much of their articles based on
content from Jimmy’s Pageant Page.
May 24 – Castings for the Miss International Canada and Manhunt / Mr. International Canada titles began in Montréal. A national pageant was slated to take place at the beginning of June, but the organization elected to set up castings in Montréal, Toronto, Edmonton and Vancouver in lieu of a contest this year. Shauna Olechow was the big winner of the Miss International Canada title.
JUNE
June 2 – At just age 17, Sherri Kidd of New Liskeard
won the Miss Northern Ontario title.
June 6 – Amanda Zatylny of Sudbury, Ont. represented
Canada at the Miss Mesoamérica Pageant in Houston, Texas. She was the first
Canadian to compete in the annual contest.
June 17 – Miss Universe 2001, Denise Quiñones of
Puerto Rico, visited Toronto. She appeared on the “Mike Bullard Show”, sharing
the stage with actor Hal Sparks from “Queer as Folk”.
June 21 – Michelle Weswaldi carried our flag in the
Miss Intercontinental Pageant.
June 22 – Kim Yee was named Canada’s best overall
contestant in the last five years in the Canadian leg of Global Beauties’
Internet Era #1 Beauty contest. Angeliki Lakouras (MI 00) was second, Cristina
Remond (MU 01) was third, Keri-Lynn Power (MW 97) was fourth, and Shannon
McArthur (MU 99) was fifth.
June 29 – Florencia Gonzalez of Scarborough, Ont. and
Ryan War of Mississauga won the Miss and Mr. CHIN Bikini titles in
Toronto at the annual CHIN International Picnic. The pageant is one of the
mainstays of the event, billed as the largest free picnic in the world.
JULY
July 1 - Christine Cho went to the Toronto Sun and complained about the poor treatment she had been receiving as Miss Canada International, and further said she would not complete any appearances for the remainder of her reign. Not a new story for the organization, but MCI 2002 went off without a hitch three weeks later.
July 6 – Anna Mae Abia won the Binibining Pilipinas
Edmonton title, and won the right to represent her city in the Binibining
Pilipinas of the World Pageant. Pageant great Sidney Holloway was one of
the emcees of the event, and was instrumental in the behind-the-scenes work to
get the show off the ground.
July 7 – Just a day after Edmonton crowned their fairest
Filipina, it was Toronto’s turn. Vanessa Gates was named Metro
Toronto’s Prettiest Filipina, while Rommel Cruz won the title of Metro
Toronto’s Most Dashing Filipino.
July 23 – It was a great day to be a Canadian, as Canucks
struck gold at the inaugural Miss Millennium Pageant [Canadian edition] in
Edmonton. Stephanie Brennan won the Miss Teen Millennium title, while
fellow Canadian Raven Buffalo of Alberta was named second runner-up. Canucks
swept the teen division’s awards, with Stephanie winning the Miss Teen Fitness
prize, Raven taking home the Miss Teen Congeniality prize, and Jamie Jones of
New Brunswick acing the talent division. Sarah Roiha of Ontario finished
second in the Miss Millennium event, with Natalie Langor of Newfoundland
placing third. Cristela D’Elia of Alberta was a finalist in the Miss division.
July 26 - Nineteen years ago on this day, a young London, Ont. woman named Karen Baldwin was propelled to stardom, when she won the Miss Universe crown in Lima, Peru.
July 28 – Annalie Bonda was crowned Miss Teen Edmonton on this day.
July 28 – The long-awaited Miss Canada International and
Miss Teen Canada International finals took place at a lively show at the Living
Arts Center in Mississauga. Thornhill’s Tara Hall was the big winner in
the Miss division, earning a ticket to South Africa to represent us at Miss
World 2001. The first runner-up was Rhonell Austin of Toronto, and Jo-Annie
Elward, representing the Acadian Peninsula of New Brunswick, finished
third. However, New Brunswick wasn’t finished with their successes, as the
province’s Teen representative, Jeannie Ferguson, bagged the Miss Teen
Canada International crown, marking the second consecutive victory for our
friends in Nouveau-Brunswick. Delynn Haggath of Chatham, Ont. was
second, and Stephanie Martin, representing the Georgian Bay region of
Ontario, was third. Making an appearance at the event was Sandi from the
Life Network reality show “The Lofters”, who was also present at the Mr. Intercontinental Canada Pageant in February. Co-hosting the event was Darcie Friest, Miss Teen Tourism Canada 1999.
July 28 – Competing in her very first pageant, Neelam Verma of Etobicoke, Ont. won the coveted Miss India Canada crown in Toronto. One of the most glamourous and exciting pageants in the country, the show was graced with the presence of Bollywood film star (and former Miss Asia), Zeenat Aman. The first runner-up was Pooja Narang of Barrie, Ont., and Dimple Sharma of Pierrefonds, Qué. was second runner-up.
AUGUST
Aug. 11 – Sasha Tan, a student at the University of
Northern British Columbia in Prince George, returned to her home country for
the summer and won the Miss Malaysia World crown. Countless beauty queens, most
notably from Asia and the Caribbean, have pursued their studies in Canada.
Aug. 18 – Toronto played host to the continent’s most
beautiful Filipinas in the Binibining Pilipinas of the World Pageant.
The only Canadian to place was Riza Santos of Calgary, who finished
third in the Teen division, however many Canadians came away with subsidiary
prizes.
Aug. 24 – Sandra Force of Toronto won the 2002
Miss Swimsuit Canada Pageant at The Docks entertainment complex in Toronto.
Aug. 26 – Laurelle Robichaud of Elliot Lake was named
Miss Teen Ontario North International in Timmins, with Belinda Forth of
Callendar winning the Miss Ontario North International crown.
Aug. 31 – The Canadian Search for Miss Universe, celebrating
its tenth anniversary, along with the fiftieth anniversary of the Miss Universe
Pageant, was held outside of Alberta for the first time at a glittering show in Toronto. Reigning Miss India
Canada Neelam Verma added to her crown collection when she won the
national title, earning the right to represent Canada at Miss Universe 2002 in
Puerto Rico. She also bagged the Miss Swimsuit prize. The first runner-up was Gurdeep
Dhaliwal of Calgary, who was also named Miss Photogenic, and the second
runner-up was Clair Nguyen of Edmonton. Finishing in a tie for third
runner-up were Jackie Nugent of Mississauga (a former Miss Oktoberfest
contestant) and Joni Hamilton of Banff. Rachelle Bassett of
Kelowna, B.C. and Natalie Harris of Cochrane, Ont. tied for the Miss
Congeniality prize. The pageant, held at the Canadian National Exhibition grounds
in Toronto, was the highest-attended event of this year’s edition of the 122-year-old, two-week-long
annual festival. The show was hosted by former Miss Toronto Universe, Carolyn Mackenzie, now an on-air anchor on the New VR television station.
Click here to see the CSMU program book cover.
Click here to see a collage of Cristina Remond, as it appeared in the CSMU 2002 program book.
Aug. 31 – Chatham, Ontario’s Brooke Ross became the
first Canadian to win the overall Miss title at the Sunburst Pageant
international finals in Atlanta, besting a field of over 300 contestants from
across Canada, the USA, the Bahamas and Puerto Rico.
SEPTEMBER
Sept. 2 – Paula Postino of Montréal was a
semi-finalist in the Miss Italia nel Mondo (Miss Italy in the World) Pageant in
Salsomaggiore, Italy. Canada has a fantastic track record in this contest,
placing at least in the semi-finals every year since 1996.
Sept. 7 – Canada played host to beauty queens from across
the Americas at the Miss Mundo Latino Internacional pageant in Mississauga. Karina
Maribel Velasquez Portillo of Guatemala walked off with the crown, but
Canada did not go away empty-handed: our representative, Ana Libaque,
won the Miss Internet prize.
Sept. 9 – Michelle Weswaldi was named Canada’s bet at
the inaugural Miss Earth Pageant in the Phillipines, after a casting process
that featured contestants from across the country.
Sept. 24 – Lori O'Keefe of Port Saunders was crowned Miss Newfoundland & Labrador in Harbour Grace, and became the latest titleholder in one of the longest-running pageants in the country. Tracy Smith of St. Lawrence was first runner-up, and Rebecca Ryan of Port Saunders was second runner-up.
Sept. 28 – Gurdeep Dhaliwal represented Canada in the
Top Model of the World Pageant in Germany. She earned the right to compete by
virtue of being named Miss Photogenic at CSMU 2002.
Sept. 30 – Final decisions were made as to Canada’s
representatives at Manhunt International and Mr. International. Nicholas
Boughton of Toronto, a commercial model, was slated to compete at Manhunt,
but stepped down due to personal reasons. Wally Rasuli, a model and
bodybuilder also from Toronto, was named Canada’s rep for both contests.
OCTOBER
Oct. 4 – Edmonton’s Shauna Olechow represented us at the Miss
International Pageant in Tokyo, Japan. She was a hot favourite of many fans for
the title.
Oct. 4 – Kitchener-Waterloo, Ont. hosted their annual Miss
Oktoberfest Pageant, which was won this year by Karen Michelle Long of
West Virginia. Calgary’s Donna Sawchyn was first runner-up, besting a
field of pageant veterans from the USA. The other Canadian representatives in
the show were Dominique Levesque of Québec (who was Miss Friendship of the World-Canada 1999, and had competed in Global Beauty Quest 1999, MCI 2000 and CSMU 2002), Crystal Faust of
Southern Ontario, and Laura Doucette of K-W.
Oct. 6 – Canada’s reps for Global Beauty Quest 2001 were
named: Terri-Lynn Yee of Toronto for the Petite division, Iram Ahmad
of Dollard-des-Ormeaux, Qué. (a CSMU 2002 contestant) for the Miss, and Erin
Fix (Miss Teen Edmonton 2000) for the Teen.
Oct. 28 – Michelle Weswaldi represented Canada at
Miss Earth.
Oct. 28 – Montréal hosted the world at the finals of Global
Beauty Quest 2001. Canada’s Terri-Lynn Yee was named the overall Miss
Congeniality. What great hosts we are!
NOVEMBER
Nov. 5 – Wally Rasuli carried our flag in Manhunt
International in Beijing.
Nov. 16 – Tara Hall represented us in Miss World in
Sun City, South Africa. “Le journal de Montréal” did some great coverage of
Tara’s participation in the event.
Nov. 17 – Raquel Aloisio represented Canada at the
Supermodel of the World Pageant in Miami Beach.
Nov. 22 – Heidi Rodíguez competed in the Miss América
Latina Pageant in the Dominican Republic. She is the first Canadian to
represent us at this pageant.
Nov. 24 – Joyce San Antonio of Toronto won the SM
Starmodels Quest in Mandaluyong City, Philippines. Filipina-Canadian beauties
have excelled for many years in events in the Philippines.
Nov. 30 - The stunning Caroline Frolic, former Miss Intercontinental Canada, Miss Toronto Universe and winner of many other titles, started her latest on-air position with The Score, Canada's second-largest and fastest-growing TV sports network. She had previously been on-air at both The New VR and WTSN.
Nov. 30 – Natasha Vassell (see February for more) was
named Miss Tourism Canada 2002 and will compete in the Miss Tourism
International finals in Colombia next year.
DECEMBER
Dec. 2 – Niko Sofianos represented Canada at the Mr.
Intercontinental Pageant in Germany, and came away with two awards, Mr.
Friendship and Best Body, in addition to be named as a semi-finalist.
Dec. 5 – Former Miss Global Petite and finalist at CSMU
2001, Nancy Habashi, competed at the World Miss University Pageant in
Seoul, South Korea, and won the Miss Talent prize. Photo courtesy of BeauLand.
Dec. 7 – In perhaps the best pageant of the year in Canada, Christie
Bartram was named Miss Chinese Toronto at the Metro Convention Center. She
will now be representing the home of the Blue Jays, Raptors and Maple Leafs in
Miss Chinese International 2002 in China. First runner-up was Francine Li,
with second runner-up going to Agnes Cheng.
Dec. 8 – Franco Cianflone represented us in the men’s
division of Best Model of the World in Istanbul. There was no female rep
from Canada.
Dec. 9 – Domenica Ruscica won the Toronto Search for
Miss Universe, and will represent the city in CSMU 2003. First runner-up was Michelle
Leslie (who previously competed in 1996), and second runner-up was Yin-Lynn
Low.
Dec. 12 – Gina Smith, who represented Nova Scotia in
the Miss Teen Canada International Pageant in July, died of leukemia in
Dartmouth, N.S.
Dec. 15 – Niko Sofianos struck gold again, this time
at the Mr. Tourism International pageant in Panama, placing as a top five
finalist and winning the Mr. Photogenic award.
Dec. 15 – Wally Rasuli competed in Mr. International
in Udaipur, India.
Dec. 22 – Shirley Zhou was named Miss Chinese Vancouver at the Vancouver Convention and Exhibition Center. She now has the difficult task to continue the city’s winning streak at the Miss Chinese International title.
JPP Awards for 2001
Please note these are by no means exclusionary: no choices were made to deliberately harm any individual, group or organization -- despite what some of you may think! For any events I have been personally involved with, I've taken great care to be a serious, unbiased person. Trust me. Thanks.Bobby and Sally Ackbarali
Marie-Josée
For running a most successful CSMU 2002 as well as five other events in 2001.
Denis Dávila
For bringing Canada into the pageant spotlight with first-time ever representatives at Miss América Latina and Miss Mesoamérica, while running the highly-sucessful Global Beauty Quest and Manhunt/Mr./Miss International franchises with Leticia Bulotano. And that’s just what he does in Canada!
Isabelle Fry and Kathy Dicks-Peyton
For running one of the best pageants in Canada, Miss Teen Newfoundland & Labrador, for five years, with only the best of interests at heart.
Niko Sofianos
For being the only Canadian, man or woman, to place in two international pageants in the 21st century, and snag three total awards in the process.
Donald West
For starting the exceptional Pageantopolis Web site, giving die-hard pageant junkies statistics and photos they have been only dreaming about.
Miss Chinese Toronto
Canadian Search for Miss Universe 2002
Global Beauty Quest 2001
Miss Canada International 2002
Miss India Canada 2001
Miss Teen Newfoundland & Labrador 2001
Bernice Liu
Stephanie Brennan
Brooke Ross
Gina Smith
Niko Sofianos
Kush Agnihotri and Alain Landry/Marc Gagnon (tie)
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