Af: Eigil Jacobsen Siden midten af november og frem til 10. <strong>dec</strong>ember var opmærksomheden rettet mod den kinesiske by Sanya på øen Hainan i Kina. Og forståeligt nok, da et rekordstort antal skønheder var samlet her frem mod kåringen af Miss World 2005. Ifølge arrangørerne var 120 nationer tilmeldt, hvilket betød, at kon- kurrencen på det punkt kun bliver overgået af OL. Gymnasieelev fra Billund Fra Danmark deltog den 18-årige gymnasie- elev Trine Lundgaard fra Billund, der vandt den danske finale foran 20-årige Sandra Vester fra Albertslund og ligeledes 20-årige Fie Wilbek fra København. At Billund for en stund er blevet kendt for an- det og mere end den berømte byggeklods, fik mange Billund-virksomheder til at spon- sere den smukke pige med alt fra tøj, sko, kosmetik til kontanter og flybilletter til/fra Kina. Sidstnævnte stod <strong>SUN</strong>-<strong>AIR</strong> og Finnair for, idet Trine fløj via Helsinki fra Billund med <strong>SUN</strong>-<strong>AIR</strong>/BRITISH <strong>AIR</strong>WAYS og videre til Kina med Finnair. Stort medieshow Som sædvanligt var der tale om et enormt medieshow, da selve kåringen af Miss World 2005 fandt sted den 10. <strong>dec</strong>ember. Det anslås, at mindst to milliarder mennesker fulgte med, da Unnur Birna Vilhjalmsdottir fra Island blev kronet til verdens smukkeste kvinde. Det kan kun VM-finalen i fodbold og åb- ningsceremonien ved OL hamle op med. Forud for kåringen var gået masser af begi- venheder, fotosessions, interviews osv. – også for Trine. Bl.a. var alle deltagerne på rundture til flere kinesiske byer. På forhånd var Trine af eksperter og bookma- kere ikke spået de store chancer for at vinde. De fleste havde 23-årige Carlene Aguilar fra Filippinerne som favorit, med 17-årige italien- ske Sofia Bruscoli som bedste europæiske kort til titlen, men det blev som nævnt Miss Island, der løb med titlen. Flere end 100 af verdens smukkeste kvinder var samlet i Kina til kåringen af Miss World 2005. Blandt dem var danske Trine Lundgaard fra Billund BILLUND-PIGE blandt verdens smukkeste Miss’er Billund girl amongst the world’s most beautiful Over 100 of the most beautiful women in the world were gathered in China recently to compete in Miss World 2005. And one of them was Trine Lundgaard from Billund, home of <strong>SUN</strong>-<strong>AIR</strong>. The eyes of the world were focused on the city of Sanya, on the island of Hainan in China from mid-November until 10 December – and no wonder, when a record number of beauty queens were gathered to crown Miss World 2005. According to the organisers, 120 differ- ent nations were represented, which means that in terms of international participation, only the Olympics are bigger! College student from Billund Denmark was represented by 18 year-old col- lege student Trine Lundgaard from Billund. And the fact that Billund became known for something other than being the home of the world-famous LEGO bricks meant that many local businesses sponsored the local beauty with everything from clothes, shoes and make- up to cash and return air tickets to China. <strong>SUN</strong>-<strong>AIR</strong> joined forces with Finnair to provide the latter, as Trine flew from Billund with <strong>SUN</strong>- <strong>AIR</strong>/BRITISH <strong>AIR</strong>WAYS to Helsinki, and on to China with Finnair. Massive media event As always, the beauty pageant itself was a massive media event, culminating in the crown- ing of Miss World 2005 on 10 December. An estimated two billion viewers saw Unnur Birna Vilhjalmsdottir from Island be crowned as the most beautiful girl in the world, a feat only the World Cup final and the Olympic opening ceremony can match. The bookmakers and experts did not think Trine had much chance of winning, as 23 year-old Carlene Aguilar from the Philip- pines was the hot favourite, with 17 year-old Italian Sofia Bruscoli as the best European shot at the title. SVÆRT VED AT komme videre? 6 7