Oksana Loses Her Miss Universe Crown

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Tuesday, September 24, 2002

Oksana Loses Her Miss Universe Crown

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Just four months after Russian girl Oksana Fyodorova was crowned Miss Universe, she has been stripped of her title for refusing to fulfill her duties and for gaining weight, pageant organizers said Monday.

Fyodorova, the first Russian to win the Miss Universe pageant in its 51-year history, said she had stepped down for personal reasons.

Pageant spokeswoman Esther Swan said the dark-haired, green-eyed St. Petersburger was sacked last week after being warned about her lackluster performance.

Swan said pageant organizers sent Fyodorova, 24, a letter last week informing her of their decision. The letter said her refusal to perform her duties as a Miss Universe titleholder "has and will cost the Miss Universe organization hundreds of thousands of dollars while gravely affecting our reputation," according to the New York Post, which reported the sacking Monday.

The newspaper said Fyodorova, among other things, had refused to participate in a recent live, two-hour broadcast of the 2002 Miss Teen U.S.A. competition.

The crown was handed over to the first runner-up of the May 29 contest, Justine Pasek of Panama.

Swan said Fyodorova had blamed personal problems for her behavior. She refused to elaborate.

The New York Post quoted an unnamed source in the pageant as saying Fyodorova was "an unbelievable beauty and an unbelievably spoiled bitch" who "does not want to do anything."

The source also said pageant organizers believed Fyodorova may be secretly married to her "well-connected boyfriend." The source said the boyfriend had showered Fyodorova with gifts since she was 16.

Fyodorova said at the pageant that she had a 38-year-old boyfriend named Vladimir.

Another insider told the New York Post that Fyodorova had gained about seven kilograms since the pageant and may be pregnant.

Swan acknowledged that Fyodorova had gained weight and said none of her specially tailored clothes fit anymore.

Fyodorova, a ranking police lieutenant and a postgraduate student in civil law, denied being married or pregnant.

Source: Agencies

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