Miss World 1975

Miss World 1975
Date	20 November 1975
Presenters	David Vine
Venue	Royal Albert Hall, London, England, United Kingdom
Broadcaster	BBC
Entrants	67
Debuts	Curaçao, El Salvador, Haiti, St. Lucia, and Swaziland
Withdraws	Botswana, Jamaica, Madagascar, Spain, and Zambia
Returns	Bolivia, Cuba, Iceland, Luxembourg, Mauritius, Peru, Seychelles, Trinidad & Tobago, Turkey, and Uruguay
Winner	Wilnelia Merced Cruz  Puerto Rico

Countries and territories which sent delegates and results.

The 25th Miss World pageant was held on November 20, 1975 at the Royal Albert Hall in London. 67 contestant took part in the pageant won by Wilnelia Merced of Puerto Rico. Runner-up was Germany, Marina Langer, in third place was Vicki Harris representing the United Kingdom, fourth place was Maricela Maxie Clark of Cuba and Yugoslavia's Ladija Verkovska completed the top five.

Results

Final Results	Contestant
Miss World 1975	Puerto Rico - Wilnelia Merced
1st Runner-up	Germany - Marina Langner
2nd Runner-up	United Kingdom - Vicki Harris
3rd Runner-up	Cuba - Maricela Maxie Clark
4th Runner-up	Yugoslavia - Lidija Velkovska
5th runner-up	Haiti - Joelle Apollon
6th runner-up	Venezuela - María Conchita Alonso
Semifinalists	Australia - Anne Davidson  Finland - Leena Kaarina Vainio  India - Anjana Sood  Lebanon - Ramona Karam  Mauritius - Mariella Tse-Sik-Sun  Saint Lucia - Sophia St Omer  South Africa - Rhoda Rademeyer  Uruguay - Carmen Abal

Special awards

• Personality: Maggie Siew Teen Sim (Singapore)
• Photogenic: Vinah Thembi Mamba (Swaziland)

67 Contestants

Africa South - Lydia Gloria Johnstone  Argentina - Lilian Noemí De Asti  Aruba - Cynthia Marlene Bruin  Australia - Anne Davidson  Austria - Rosemarie Holzschuh  Bahamas - Ava Marilyn Burke  Barbados - Peta Hazel Greaves  Belgium - Christine Delmelle  Bermuda - Donna Louise Wright  Bolivia - Maria Monica Guardia  Brazil - Zaida Souza Costa  Canada - Normande Jacques  Colombia - Amanda Amaya Correa  Costa Rica - Maria Mayela Bolaños Ugalde  Cuba - Maricela (Maxie) Clark  Curaçao - Elvira Nelly Maria Bakker  Denmark - Pia Isa Lauridsen  Dominican Republic - Carmen Rosa Arredondo Pou  El Salvador - Ana Stella Comas Durán  Finland - Leena Kaarina Vainio  France - Sophie Sonia Perin  Germany - Marina Langner  Gibraltar - Lillian Anne Lara  Greece - Bella Adamopoulou  Guam - Dora Ann Quintanilla Camacho  Guernsey - Carol Dawn Le Billon  Haiti - Joelle Apollon  Holland - Barbara Ann Neefs  Honduras - Etelinda Mejía Velásquez  Hong Kong - Teresa Chu Tsui-Kuen  Iceland - Halldora Björk Jonsdottir  India - Anjana Sood  Ireland - Elaine Rosemary O'Hara  Israel - Atida Mor

Italy - Vanna Bortolini  Japan - Chiharu Fujiwara  Jersey - Susan Maxwell de Gruchy  Korea - Lee Sung-hee  Lebanon - Ramona Karam  Luxembourg - Marie Thérèse Manderschied  Malaysia - Fauziah Haron  Malta - Marie Grace (Mary) Ciantar  Mauritius - Marielle Tse Sik-Sun  Mexico - Blanca Patricia López Esparza New Zealand - Janet Andrea Nugent  Nicaragua - Maria Auxiliadora Paguaga Mantilla'  Norway - Sissel Gulbrandsen  Peru - Mary Orfanides Canakis  Philippines - Suzanne Gonzalez  Puerto Rico - Wilnelia Merced Cruz  Saint Lucia - Sophia St. Omer  Seychelles - Amelie Lydia Michel  Singapore - Maggie Siew Teen Sim  South Africa - Rhoda Rademeyer  Sri Lanka - Angela Seneviratne  Swaziland - Vinah Thembi Mamba  Sweden - Agneta Catarina Magnusson  Switzerland - Franziska (Franzi) Angst  Thailand - Raevadee Pattamaphong  Trinidad and Tobago - Donna Sandra Dalrymple  Tunisia - Monia Dida  Turkey - Harika Degirmenci  United Kingdom - Vicki Ann Harris  United States - Annelise Ilschenko  Uruguay - Carmen Abal Venezuela - María Concepción Alonso Bustillo  Yugoslavia - Lidija Velkovska

Trivia

Returning countries and Debuts

• Curaçao, El Salvador, Haiti, St. Lucia, and Swaziland competed in Miss World for the first time.
• Cuba last competed in 1955.
• Bolivia and Uruguay last competed in 1965.
• Trinidad & Tobago last competed in 1971.
• Iceland, Luxembourg, Mauritius, Peru, Seychelles, and Turkey last competed in 1973.

Withdrawals and Nations not competing

• Spain promptly withdrew from the competition, after an announcement that General Francisco Franco, the ruler of Spain, had died on the morning of the pageant date. Pageant organizers concerned that she had been too upset by Franco’s death to appear in the finals.

Replacements

• Italy (Anna Vitale) was replaced by Vanna Bortolini, her first runner-up of the Miss Italy beauty pageant, because she decided to return home to take care of her ill mother.
• South Africa (Rhoda Rademeyer) was the second runner-up of Miss South Africa beauty pageant. The official titleholder of this pageant, Vera Johns, was disqualified by the Miss World organizers when it was discovered that she came from Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe). Her Rhodesian nationality apparently did not violate the pageant's rules. The first runner-up, Crystal Coopers, went to London, but her father would not allow her to compete there because it was discovered that Vera Johns was not going to be officially stripped of her title.

Other Notes

• France (Sophie Perin) was the third Miss World contestant to win the Miss International title in 1976, after the winning streaks of Brucene Smith (Miss World 1971 contestant representing the United States of America), who won the title in 1974, and Tuula Anneli Björkling (Miss World 1972 contestant representing Finland), who won the title in 1973.
• Swaziland was now the organizer of the Miss Swaziland pageant.
• Bahamas competed in Miss Universe 1982, and then awarded as Miss Photogenic.
• Germany was handpicked by a pageant photographer, rather than the winner of that nation's pageant.
• Argentina competed in Miss Universe 1976, and she was a semifinalist.

External sources

• Pageantopolis
• Jimmy's Pageant Page
• Beauty School's Miss World 1975 Class