Miss Latin America

Miss América Latina or Miss América Latina del Mundo, known in English as Miss Latin America or Miss Latin America of the World, is an international beauty contest held annually. It is organized by the Miss América Latina Organization. Despite its name, the contest is not restricted to only Latin American nations. It is designed for women of Latina descent around the globe. There is an average of about 20 contestants every year. It has two sister pageants: Miss Latina US (which selects the US delegate to Miss América Latina) and Miss Teen US Latina.

The current titleholder is Laura Spoya from Peru.

The Miss América Latina pageant was founded in the early 1980s. The first edition was held in 1981, when it was open to only Latina contestants in Miami, Florida, United States. In 1983, the contest went international.

Miss Latin America 2011 took place on June 4, 2011, in the Grand Theater at the Barcelo Bavaro Palace Deluxe in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic. 30 delegates participated in the event. At the conclusion of the final event - which was televised in some areas - Colombia's Carolina Lemus crowned Ecuador's Estefani Chalco. Chalco became the first Ecuadorian woman to win the contest. The runners-up were Andrea Sandoval (Venezuela), Cintia Regert (Brazil), Johana Diaz (Colombia) and Yaneth Garcia (Mexico). The semifinalists were the delegates from the Dominican Republic, Philippines, Spain, Portugal, Guatemala, Uruguay and Bolivia.

* The first two Miss Latin America contests were only open to women living in Miami.Although the winners of both contests are regarded as official Miss Latin America titleholders, their wins do not appear in the United States' tally.

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Wikipedia