Miss USA 2010

Miss USA 2010
Rima Fakih, Miss USA 2010
Date	May 16, 2010[1]
Presenters	Natalie Morales Curtis Stone Joan Rivers Melissa Rivers
Entertainment	Boys Like Girls Trace Adkins
Venue	The AXIS, Las Vegas, Nevada
Broadcaster	NBC Telemundo
Entrants	51
Placements	15
Winner	Rima Fakih Michigan
Congeniality	Belinda Wright  Nebraska
Photogenic	Audrey Moore  Alabama
← 2009 2011 →

Miss USA 2010 was the 59th Miss USA pageant, held at the Theatre for the Performing Arts in Planet Hollywood Resort and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada on May 16, 2010 which was broadcast live on NBC. Kristen Dalton of North Carolina, crowned her successor, Rima Fakih of Michigan as Miss USA 2010 at the end of this event. This was Michigan's third Miss USA title and the first title in 17 years. Fakih became the first Arab American to win the Miss USA title.^[2]

Fakih represented the United States at the Miss Universe 2010 pageant in Las Vegas on August 23, 2010 where she did not advance to the semifinals; becoming the fifth Miss USA to do so in Miss Universe history (the last time was Shauntay Hinton in 2002).

Fakih's victory was made controversial with charges of bias facing the Miss USA pageant after Morgan Elizabeth Woolard, who was runner-up, defended Arizona's anti-illegal immigration bill.^[3][4][5]

The pageant was co-hosted by Australian celebrity chef Curtis Stone and Today show correspondent Natalie Morales.^[6] Color commentary was provided by Joan and Melissa Rivers.^[6] Pop rock band Boys Like Girls performed during the swimsuit competition and country music star Trace Adkins performed during the evening gown competition.^[6] Stone, Adkins, and both Rivers have all appeared on Donald Trump's television show Celebrity Apprentice.

Background[]

Selection of contestants[]

One delegate from each state and the District of Columbia was chosen in state pageants held which began in July 2009 and ended in January 2010. The first state pageant was Florida, held on July 11, 2009. The final pageant was Arkansas, held on January 10, 2010.

Nine delegates are former Miss Teen USA state winners and two are former Miss America state winners. One delegate became a future Miss America state winner.

Preliminary round[]

Prior to the final telecast, the delegates competed in the preliminary competition, which involves private interviews with the judges and a presentation show where they compete in swimsuit and evening gown. The preliminary competition took place on May 12, 2010, at 10 pm (ET) hosted by Chet Buchanan and Kristen Dalton, and was broadcast online over Ustream.^[7] The 2010 pageant drew the notice of conservative commentators for releasing a set of "exotic and revealing" promotional photos.^[8]

Finals[]

During the final competition, the fifteen delegates with the highest average score from the preliminary competition were announced. The top fifteen competed in swimsuit, while the top ten competed evening gown, and the top five competed in the final question signed up by a panel of judges to determine the winner. The judges' composite score was shown after each round of competition for the fourth time since 2002.

Results[]

Placements[]

Final Results	Contestant
Miss USA 2010	Michigan – Rima Fakih
1st Runner-Up	Oklahoma – Morgan Woolard
2nd Runner-Up	Virginia – Samantha Casey
3rd Runner-Up	Colorado – Jessica Hartman
4th Runner-Up	Maine – Katie Whittier
Top 10	Alabama – Audrey Moore California – Nicole Johnson Mississippi – Breanne Ponder Missouri – Ashley Strohmier Tennessee – Tucker Perry
Top 15	Arkansas – Adrielle Churchill Kansas – Bethany Gerber Nebraska – Belinda Wright Pennsylvania – Gina Cerilli Wyoming – Claire Schreiner

Special awards[]

Award	Contestant
Miss Congeniality	Nebraska - Belinda Wright
Miss Photogenic	Alabama - Audrey Moore

Final scores[]

Order of announcements[]

Delegates[]

State	Contestant	Hometown	Age[a]	Height	Placement	Award	Notes
Alabama	Audrey Moore	Birmingham	20	5'8"	Top 10	Miss Photogenic
Alaska	Sarah Temple	Eagle River	21	6'0"			Sister of Veronica Temple, Miss Alaska's Outstanding Teen 2009
Arizona	Brittany Bell	Chandler	22	5'8"			Phoenix Suns dancer Later Miss Guam Universe 2014
Arkansas	Adrielle Churchill	Dover	24	5'8"	Top 15		Previously Miss National Sweetheart 2005
California	Nicole Johnson	Westlake Village	24	5'7"	Top 10
Colorado	Jessica Hartman	Pueblo	19	5'10"	3rd runner-up		Later Miss Intercontinental 2011 Later Miss Missouri 2014
Connecticut	Ashley Bickford	Torrington	25	5'8"			Previously Miss Connecticut Teen USA 2002 Previously Miss Rhode Island 2007
Delaware	Julie Citro	Wilmington	26	5'8"
District of Columbia	MacKenzie Green	Washington, D.C.	21	5'11"
Florida	Megan Clementi	Orlando	26	5'6"			Orlando Magic Dancer
Georgia	Cassady Lance	Savannah	25	5'8"			Previously Miss Georgia Teen USA 2003
Hawaii	Renee Nobriga	Haleiwa	26	5'10"
Idaho	Jessca Hellwinkel	Boise	19	5'7"
Illinois	Ashley Bradarich	Homer Glen	24	5'8"			Sister of Carlyn Bradarich, Miss Iowa USA 2014
Indiana	Allison Biehle	North Vernon	21	5'6"
Iowa	Katherine Connors	Bettendorf	20	5'8"			Atlanta Hawks Cheerleader
Kansas	Bethany Gerber	Winfield	21	5'9"	Top 15
Kentucky	Kindra Clark	Mount Washington	20	5'6"
Louisiana	Sara Brooks	Lafayette	22	5'8"
Maine	Katie Whittier	New Gloucester	26	6'1"	4th runner-up
Maryland	Simone Feldman	North Potomac	23	5'9"
Massachusetts	Lacey Wilson	Boston	26	5'10"			Previously Miss Illinois Teen USA 2002
Michigan	Rima Fakih	Dearborn	24	5'9"	Winner
Minnesota	Courtney Basara	Duluth	20	5'9"
Mississippi	Breanne Ponder	Mount Olive	20	5'7"	Top 10
Missouri	Ashley Strohmier	Jefferson City	21	5'8"	Top 10
Montana	Annie Anseth	Billings	20	5'5"
Nebraska	Belinda Wright	Scotia	21	5'6"	Top 15	Miss Congeniality
Nevada	Julianna Erdesz	Reno	25	5'8"			Previously Miss Nevada 2008
New Hampshire	Nicole Houde	Manchester	24	5'7"
New Jersey	Chenoa Greene	Atco	24	5'11"
New Mexico	Rosanne Aguilar	Sunland Park	24	5'8"			Sister of Raelene Aguilar, Miss New Mexico USA 2008
New York	Davina Reeves	Harlem	26	5'9"
North Carolina	Nadia Moffett	High Point	22	5'7"
North Dakota	Taylor Kearns	Fargo	20	5'7"			Previously Miss North Dakota Teen USA 2007
Ohio	Amanda Tempel	St. Bernard	20	5'10"
Oklahoma	Morgan Woolard	Moore	21	5'9"	1st runner-up		Previously Miss Oklahoma Teen USA 2006
Oregon	Kate Paul	Mitchell	24	5'5"
Pennsylvania	Gina Cerilli	Greensburg	24	5'8"	Top 15
Rhode Island	Kristina Primavera	Narragansett	23	5'9"			Previously Miss Rhode Island Teen USA 2003
South Carolina	Rachel Law	Greenville	21	5'8"
South Dakota	Emily Miller	Irene	22	5'8"
Tennessee	Tucker Perry	Franklin	21	5'10"	Top 10		Daughter of Kathi Tucker, Miss Washington USA 1983
Texas	Kelsey Moore	El Paso	19	6'1"
Utah	Katya Feinstein	Centerville	20	5'8"			Previously Miss Utah Teen USA 2008
Vermont	Nydelis Ortiz	Essex	20	5'6"
Virginia	Samantha Casey	Jeffersonton	21	5'9"	2nd runner-up		Previously Miss Virginia Teen USA 2006
Washington	Tracy Turnure	Seattle	24	6'2"			Twin sister of Tara Turnure, Miss Washington USA 2009
West Virginia	Erica Goldsmith	Mineral Wells	23	5'4"
Wisconsin	Courtney Lynn Lopez	Franksville	20	5'7"			Previously Miss Wisconsin Teen USA 2008
Wyoming	Claire Schreiner	Gillette	23	5'8"	Top 15

Judges[]

Preliminary judges[]

• Billie Causieestko
• Chip Lightman
• Colleen Grillo
• Guy McCarter
• Leigh Rossini
• Rich Thurber
• Scott Lochmus

Final judges[]

• Carmelo Anthony - NBA’s Denver Nuggets who is a two-time Olympic medalist.
• Tara Conner - Miss USA 2006 from Kentucky
• Paula Deen - Best-selling author, chef and host of four shows on The Food Network.
• Oscar Nunez - Star of NBC’s hit comedy series, “The Office”.
• Phil Ruffin - American businessman and real estate mogul.
• Suze Yalof-Schwart - Executive Fashion Editor-at-Large of Glamour.
• Melania Trump - Model who has appeared on multiple magazine covers including Vogue and the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue.
• Johnny Weir - Three-time National Champion figure skater and Olympian.

Background music[]

Preliminary[]

• Special Performance: "Soundcheck" by Sean Van der Wilt

Telecast[]

• Contestants Introduction: "Telephone" by Lady Gaga featuring Beyoncé and "Tik Tok" by Ke$ha (background music)
• Swimsuit Competition: "Heart Heart Heartbreak" by Boys Like Girls (live performance)
• Evening Gown Competition: "This Ain't No Love Song" by Trace Adkins (live performance)

Historical significance[]

• Michigan wins competition for the third time.
• Oklahoma earns the 1st runner-up position for the second time. The last time it placed this was in 1989.
• Virginia earns the 2nd runner-up position for the first time and reaches its highest placement since Patricia Southall in 1994.
• Colorado earns the 3rd runner-up position for the second time. The last time it placed this was in 1963.
• Maine earns the 4th runner-up position for the first time and surpasses its previous highest placement in 1977. Coincidentally, Maine survived three elimination cuts for the first time.
• States that placed in semifinals the previous year were Arkansas, California, Tennessee and Virginia.
• California placed for the sixth consecutive year.
• Tennessee placed for the fifth consecutive year.
• Arkansas and Virginia placed for the second consecutive year.
• Mississippi, Missouri, Oklahoma and Pennsylvania last placed in 2008.
• Kansas and Michigan last placed in 2007.
• Alabama and Maine last placed in 2006.
• Colorado last placed in 2000.
• Wyoming last placed in 1986.
• Nebraska last placed in 1980.
• Minnesota breaks an ongoing streak of placements since 2008.
• Utah breaks an ongoing streak of placements since 2007.
• South Carolina breaks an ongoing streak of placements since 2006.
• Texas breaks an ongoing streak of placements since 2001. Ironically, Kandace Krueger won the title in 2001 and the streak began here.

Contestant notes[]

• Tracy Turnure, Miss Washington USA, was crowned by her twin sister Tara Turnure. This marks the first time that twins have won back-to-back at a Miss USA state pageant.^[9]
• Belinda Wright, Miss Nebraska USA, returned home on May 8 after her father was killed in a farming accident. She later returned to Las Vegas prior to the preliminary competition on May 11.^[10]
• Rima Fakih is the first Arab American to win the contest. When she won, she had to face many racist comments and allegations. The same thing happened when Nina Davuluri won rival pageant Miss America a few years later.^[11]

Prize package[]

Miss Congeniality: The award is for a contestant that exemplifies respect and admiration of the contestant's peers, who voted for her as the most congenial. She was awarded a $1,000 cash prize as well as a Flip MinoHD Video Camcorder and jewelry from Diamond Nexus Labs.

Miss Photogenic: The general public voted on www.nbc.com for the contestant who exemplifies beauty through the lens of a camera. She was awarded a $1,000 cash prize as well as a Flip MinoHD Video Camcorder and jewelry from Diamond Nexus Labs.

Miss USA 2010: A custom diamond tiara and jewelry by ; a shoe collection from Nina Footwear; a one-year scholarship from the New York Film Academy; hair care products and accessories from Farouk Systems; eveningwear wardrobe by Sherri Hill; a Flip MinoHD Video Camcorder; a collection of luggage by ; luxury accommodations in a New York City apartment for the duration of her reign, including living expenses; gym membership to Gravity Fitness; hair services from John Barrett Salon; modeling portfolio by photographer Fadil Berisha; dermatology services from Dr. Cheryl Thellman-Karcher; health and nutrition consultation by Tanya Zuckerbrot, MS, RD; dental services by Dr. Jan Linhart, D.D.S.; casting opportunities and professional representation by the Miss Universe Organization; a year-long salary as Miss USA; extensive travel opportunities representing sponsors and charitable partners; year-long consultation with a fashion stylist and access to a personal appearance wardrobe and the opportunity to represent the USA at Miss Universe 2010 this summer in Las Vegas.^[12]

Notes[]

References[]

External links[]

• Miss USA official website