BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Beauty queens from every U.S.
state and the District of Columbia are vying for the crown this weekend,
each hoping to be the one named Miss USA.
Reigning queen Erin
Brady, of South Glastonbury, Connecticut, is set to relinquish her crown
Sunday evening when her successor is chosen during a three-hour
telecast from the Baton Rouge Civic Center in Louisiana.
A field
of 51 contestants will be trimmed to 15 after the broadcast opens at 8
p.m. EDT, based on competitions and interviews conducted in past days.
Remaining contestants are to be judged in swimsuit, evening gown and
interview competitions. The winner of the 63rd Miss USA title will
represent the U.S. at the Miss Universe competition later this year.
Celebrity
judges walked a red carpet in evening gowns and tuxedos before the
start of the show, posing for pictures and talking about the qualities
they would be looking for in the beauty they crown the winner.
"It’s
very important that she has confidence," said Barbara Palacios, Miss
Universe 1986 and a coach and judge for the new Telemundo reality show,
"Miss Latina Universo." ”The right attitude and perseverance are also
very important."
"It’s all about the eyes," said Lance Bass of the
pop singing boy group NSYNC. "I just want to see a girl that is just
really having a good time up there."
Others who walked the red
carpet were former NBA star Karl Malone; actors Ian Ziering, Melissa
Peterman and Rumer Willis; pageant show host Jeannie Mai; and Donald
Trump, who owns the Miss USA organization.
Brady recently told The
Associated Press that she has worked hard during her tenure to break
stereotypes about pageants and the women who compete in them.
A
graduate of Central Connecticut State University in finance, Brady said
that after the end of her reign she plans to return to New York to
pursue a job that can use her knowledge to serve a global market.
"We’re very intelligent women with great personalities," she said recently.
Contestants
have been in Baton Rouge, Louisiana’s capital city, for more than a
week. During that time they have taken part in preliminaries and also
done some sightseeing. They have visited the Louisiana governor’s
mansion, tasted local cuisine and relaxed by singing karaoke.
___
Online: www.missusa.com
Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights
reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or
redistributed.