"Atlantic City has survived Hurricane Sandy!" said Good Morning America’s Lara Spencer, who co-hosted the ABC show with Chris Harrison. And now it has survived the mother of all beauty pageants.
After a night of big numbers, long evening gowns, tight swimsuit strutting, dancing, singing and, yes, answering those tough judges’ questions (including ones about Miley Cyrus and Syria!), the 53 Miss America contestants (50 states, District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands) were narrowed down to one winner.
Miss New York Nina Davuluri, 24, from Syracuse, sashayed off with the tiara and the $50,000 scholarship cash. She performed a Bollywood fusion dance (after missing her cue at first) and answered a question about plastic surgery. ("Be confident in who you are!") She said she hopes to become a doctor, like her father, who is an obstetrician. She once battled bulimia, according to a Syracuse(dot)com July story, and is the first Indian-American to serve as Miss New York/ She is the first Miss America winner of Indian descent.
Moments after winning the crown, Davuluri described how delighted she is that the nearly century-old pageant sees beauty and talent of all kinds. "I’m so happy this organisation has embraced diversity," she said in her first press conference after winning the crown in Atlantic City, New Jersey’s Boardwalk Hall.
Her pageant platform was "celebrating diversity through cultural competency." She is the second consecutive Miss New York to win the Miss America crown, succeeding Mallory Hagan, who was selected in January when the pageant was still held in Las Vegas. The Miss America Organization will compensate Hagan for her shortened reign.
Davuluri’s victory led to some negative comments on Twitter from users upset that someone of Indian heritage had won the pageant. She brushed those aside. "I have to rise above that," she said. "I always viewed myself as first and foremost American."
Earlier in the week, Davuluri said she felt she’d performed well in the lifestyle/fitness, evening gown, talent and interview sections. Davuluri was crowned Miss New York in July. She is the first Indian-American to be named Miss New York.