MISS SOUTH AMERICA

by **crisfan** Wed Dec 17 2008, 09:22

Back in the '80s the pageant of Miss Sudamerica took place prior to Miss Universe. Future representatives of South American nations participated in what served as a preamble of what was to come at Miss Universe. Venezuela consecutively won the first four editions of the pageant, and these winners placed the highest out of the South American countries at Miss Universe. This streak was broken in 1987 by Patricia Lopez Ruiz of Colombia, who would later on fail to enter the semifinals of MU despite heavy favoritism.

1983
Lima, Peru

1. VENEZUELA, Paola Ruggeri Ghigo (MU Semifinalist)
2. BRAZIL, Mariza Fully Coelho
3. PERU, Vivien Griffiths Shields
4. COLOMBIA, Julie Pauline Sáenz Starnes

1984
Lima, Peru

1. VENEZUELA, Carmen Maria Montiel Avila (MU 2nd Runner-up)
2. COLOMBIA, Susana Caldas Lemaitre (MU 4th Runner-up)
3. PERU, Fiorella Ferrari Iglesias
4. ECUADOR, Leonor Patricia Gonzenbach Vallejo

1985
Lima, Peru

1. VENEZUELA, Silvia Cristina Martínez Stapulionis (MU 3rd Runner-up)
2. BRAZIL, Márcia Giagio Canavezes de Oliveira (MU Semifinalist)
3. COLOMBIA, Sandra Eugenia Borda Caldas
4. PERU, María Gracia Galleno Bedoya

1986
Caracas, Venezuela

1. VENEZUELA, Bárbara Palacios Teyde (Miss Universe)
2. COLOMBIA, María Mónica Urbina Pugliesse (MU 2nd Runner-up)
3. BRAZIL, Deise Nunes de Souza (MU Semifinalist)
4. BOLIVIA, Elizabeth O'Connor d'Arlach

1987
Cartagena, Colombia

1. COLOMBIA, Patricia López Ruiz
2. URUGUAY, María Victoria Zangaro Grosso
3. VENEZUELA, Inés María Calero Rodríguez (MU 3rd Runner-up)
4. BOLIVIA, Patricia Hortensia Arce Rocabado
***

Inspite of extreme heavy favoritism and the prize of Miss Photogenic, Patricia Lopez did not place at MU in Singapore. In fact, Miss Venezuela was the only finalist to have any significant success at Miss Universe.

Most surprisingly, the future Miss Universe, Cecilia Bolocco of Chile, was left out of the finalists, while another future MU semifinalist, Jessica Newton of Peru, was also ignored at Miss Sudamerica.