Leila Lopes - Miss Universe 2011

Leila Lopes - Miss Universe 2011

Leila Lopes, 25, created history on Monday when she was crowned winner of the 2011 Miss Universe in São Paulo, Brazil, becoming the first Angolan Miss Universe.

The 5 ft 10 1/2 inches tall beauty is also the fourth African woman to win the title. The last African to win is Mpule Kwelagobe, Miss Universe 1999 from Botswana. Other winners came from Namibia (1992) and South Africa (1978).

Besides beating 89 other contestants, Lopes came out the victor above contestants from Ukraine (23-year-old Olesia Stefanko, 1st Runner-up), Brazil (Priscila Machado, 2ndRunner-up), 3rd Runner-up Miss Philippines, and 4th Runner-up was Miss China.

"I consider myself a woman endowed with inner beauty. I have acquired many wonderful principles from my family and I intend to follow these for the rest of my life," Lopes said after she won the crown.

Miss Universe 2011 is judged by celebrities from many fields including sports, media and fashion. There are two types of judges - Telecast Judges and Preliminary Judges.

The judges' names are: Telecast Judges: Halio Castroneves, Connie Chung, Isabeli Fontana, Vivica A. Fox, Adrienne Maloof-Nassif, Lea Salonga, Farouk Shami, Amelia Vega (Miss Universe 2003) and Italo Zanzi.

Preliminary Judges: BJ Coleman, Francesca Romana Diana, Ana Paula Junqueira, Scott Lazerson, Matheus Mazzafera, Jimmy Nguyen, Lara Spotts.

Norway and Zambia withdrew from the contest this year, but eight countries returned. They are Cayman Islands, Chile, Estonia, Montenegro, Portugal, St. Lucia, Turks & Caicos, Vietnam.