138 contestants will participate in the semifinal round, from a total 1,000 participants from 42 ethnic groups, at the 2nd Miss Ethnic Vietnamese pageant to be held in Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City from Nov 1 to 15.
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| Contestants H’Phao Nie (L) and Mung Thuy Linh (R) from Dak Lak and Ha Giang provinces. |
The top three winners will represent Vietnam at an international beauty contest in 2012, according to the organizers International Advertising and Trade Fair Joint Stock Company and the Committee for Ethnic Minority Affairs.
The beauty contest aims to honor the traditional values, beauty, talent and intelligence of women from ethnic minority groups as well as strengthen solidarity amongst the various ethnic groups.
Contestants will compete with each other in the swim suit round, the Q&A section, jogging, flower arranging, singing, dancing, cooking, weaving, and practice of meditation and yoga. They will also participate in social, cultural and charitable events, environmental protection activities and visit cultural and historical relics.
The winner will receive a cash prize of VND100 million. The first and second runner-up will receive cash prizes of VND70 million and VND50 million each.
The organizers will also award many other titles such as Miss HCMC, Miss Friendly, Most beautiful ethnic costume, Most beautiful body, Most beautiful face, Most beautiful skin, Most talented, Miss Ao Dai, Miss mountainous region, Miss tourism, Most beautiful hair and Most beautiful smile.
The final round will take place in Ho Chi Minh City from November 26 to December 10.
The awards ceremony and crowning night will be held at the Hoa Binh Theater, District 10, HCMC at 8 p.m. on December 12. The event will be broadcast live on HTV and VTV channels.