It is hard to explain the hold on Italians of Miss Italia to someone that does not have the opportunity to experience it up close. The preparation work for Miss Italia 2005 started as soon as Miss Italia 2004 finished and the images of the hopeful candidates were transmitted on TV since August. The final three nights were watched by an average of 6 million Italians. In the meantime newspapers and magazines were filled with demates and the crucial decisions to take - what will the candidates wear? Is a bikini too adventurous or just right? How will the candidates be eliminated, and crucially, will the final one make Italians happy?
As it turns out they company running the event, Miren International - with the inventor of the Miss Italia competition 66 years ago still its spiritual father and ever present to give the first kiss to the new Miss - decided that bikinis were just right. They also decided that eliminations would depend heavily on telephone voting, with the girls challenging each other on one-to-one competitions. These competitions were alternating between the tragic and comic with the "Miss" preparing “Pesto alla Genovese†in bikinis, trying their hand at archery, singing, dancing, performing stand-up comedy and generally doing anything they though might motivate people to call in for them.
The event culminated in a series of three very, very long nights which start at 9 pm and finish around 1230 or 1 am. Yesterday was the very final night and by 1:15 am Italy had a brand new Miss.
In the hours leading up to the final decision the misses were asked a variety of taxing questions (from “Do you have a boyfriend?†to “What is your favourite film?â€), got to sit around Bruce Willis (honorary president of the jury), tried out different dresses, and tried to put on a brave face when eliminated. The best moments were offered when the crowd at the studio indicated their direct disagreement with the eliminations taking place – by the last twenty there was considerable concern that the best had already been eliminated but the diplomatic presenter Carlo Conte managed to keep things under control.
In the end two remained – 21-year old Edelfa Chiara Masciotta representing Piedmonte and 19-year old Anna Munafo’. Edelfa won – she has brown eyes and hair, is 1.76m tall. She is studying law but dreams of becoming an actress or dancer. She likes sports, especially swimming, bicycling and skating. She defines herself as a “sweet girl, sensible and determined at the same timeâ€.
