María Julia Mantilla
| Beauty pageant titleholder | |
 |
|
| Born |
María Julia Mantilla García 10 July 1984 Trujillo, La Libertad, Peru |
|---|---|
| Other names | Maju Mantilla |
| Height | 1.74 m (5 ft 9 in) |
| Hair color | Light brown |
| Eye color | Hazel |
| Major competition(s) |
Miss Perú 2004 (1st runner-up) (Miss Perú Mundo) Miss World 2004 (Winner, Miss World Americas) |
María Julia “Maju” Mantilla García (born July 10, 1984) is a Peruvian actress, dancer, model, teacher and beauty queen who won Miss World 2004 in China.
Born in Trujillo, Mantilla is the younger of two daughters. She was studying to become a high school teacher and planned to start a second degree in Tourism. One of her dreams was to own an online tourism company to promote her native town and country all over the world. Her city, Trujillo, is a mixture of colonial and pre-Columbian architecture.
In 2001, Mantilla became the Peruvian national champion of Triathlon and Pentathlon, and was elected national athlete of the year. She is a professional dancer in The Marinera, a typical local dance. With a group of ladies, she developed a program in Trujillo to give breakfast to hundreds of children in poor areas.
In 2004, she was Miss La Libertad and won the right to represent Peru in the Miss World contest as runner-up to Liesel Holler (Miss Peru Universe 2004) and was one of the major favorites in the run-up to the pageant, which was decided by a global television/telephone/online vote. Popularly known in her country as "Maju" Mantilla, her aunt María Julia Mantilla Mayer was Miss Peru 1969.
On December 4, 2004, in the Beauty Crown Theatre located in the Chinese beach city of Sanya, she was crowned Miss World 2004 by the winner from the year before, Rosanna Davison of Ireland, becoming the second winner from her country.
Mantilla was a record breaker for Peru during the competition, and was among the semifinalists in three fast track events. In Miss World Sports, she tied for third place with Kenisha Thom of Trinidad & Tobago. In Miss World Talent, she was among the Top 25 semifinalists with a traditional Peruvian dance, The Marinera Norteña. And finally, in Contestants' Choice, she placed second runner-up.
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