Miss Universe 2011 (Leila Lopes)

 

Leila Lopes (pageant titleholder) 2011

Leila Luliana da Costa Vieira Lopes (born February 26, 1986) is an Angolan beauty pageant titleholder who was crowned Miss Angola 2011 and later Miss Universe 2011. On 17 September 2011 new allegations arose claiming that her documents were falsified in order to show a legal residence status in the United Kingdom and win the qualifying Miss Angola UK contest. If proven true, she may lose her Miss Universe title.

Personal life

Born in Benguela, Angola. Her mother was born in the Province of Benguela and her father was born in the Cuanza Sul Province, Lopes says to be a business management student in Great Britain, where she was crowned Miss Angola UK on October 8, 2010, the official representative of the Angolan community in the United Kingdom to the 2011 Miss Angola pageant.

Beauty pageants wins

Miss Angola UK - she won this on October 8, 2010, but the victory caused protests within the Angolan community in Britain, due to the fact that she was not a resident of the UK and thus, not eligible.

Miss Angola - held in Luanda on December 18, 2010, gaining the right to represent Angola in Miss Universe 2011. She also obtained the Photogenic Award during the contest.

Miss Universe 2011 - in São Paulo, Brazil on September 12, 2011. She became the first Angolan Miss Universe and the 60th titleholder. Lopes received the title from the former Miss Universe titleholder, Ximena Navarrete of Mexico.[10] Lopes is the fourth African to win the title since the beginning of the worldwide pageant (South Africa, 1978; Namibia, 1992; Botswana, 1999; and Angola, 2011) and the second African of African descent to win following Mpule Kwelagobe, Miss Universe 1999 from Botswana. Lopes also became the first woman from Angola to win a "Big four" beauty pageant, and the first black African woman to win Miss Universe in the new millenium.