July 14, 2008 (Monday) gave the people of Venezuela a cause of celebration. The moment was when Dayana Mendoza was crowned Miss Universe 2008. Sharing the platform, in the moment of glory, were four other participants - Miss Colombia Taliana Vargas (1^st runner up), Miss Dominican Republic Marianne Cruz Gonzalez (2^nd runner up), Miss Russia Vera Krasova (3^rd runner up) and Miss Mexico Elisa Najera (4^th runner up). All of them competed against 75 other participants, to become one of the top five.

 

As a custom, elated Dayana Mendoza received the crown from her predecessor, Riyo Mori of Japan. Born on 1^st July 1986, Dayana is a model, who hails from Caracas, Venezuela. She signed with Elite Model Management in 2001 and since then, has been walking the ramp for various international designers, like Versace and Roberto Cavalli. She speaks Spanish, English, and Italian fluently. A model by profession, Dayana Mendoza wants to make her career in Interior Design and also advertising.

 

Standing second to Dayana is Miss Colombia Taliana Vargas, with the 1^st runner up position. Born on 20^th December 1987, this brown-eyed beauty is a student of Journalism, at the Northern Virginia Community College in Alexandria, Virginia. She is from Santa Marta, Magdalena, and speaks fluent Spanish, English, and Italian, apart from some Greek and Arabic. Taliana Vargas claims of Greek descent, through her grandparents. One of the ever youngest Miss Colombia, she is often described as a typical Latino model.

 

Marianne Cruz Gonzalez, of Dominican Republic, bagged the position of the 2^nd runner up, in Miss Universe 2008. Before this, she won Miss Continente Americano 2007 beauty pageant. Born in Hermanas Mirabal, Salcedo, this femme fatale started working at a very young age, in order to provide financial support to her family. The 23-year old beauty is presently studying Fashion Design and Merchandising and aspires to become a world class fashion designer, just like Oscar De La Renta.

Miss Russia Vera Krasova became the third runner up in Miss Universe 2008 pageant. A 20-year old bombshell, who has just got over her teen years, she proclaims herself to be very ambitious. She is very independent by nature and has been helping her parents since the age of sixteen. Vera Krasova has had work experience during her college years, including one as a waitress. Though she is studying Management and economics presently, Krasova hasn’t yet chosen on the career path that she wants to follow in future.

 

Last, but not the least, is Miss Mexico Elisa Najera, who managed to gain the 4^th runner up position in Miss Universe 2008. Standing tall at 6½ feet, this Mexican beauty also won the ‘Queen Of Vinpearl - Best in Swimsuit’ title. She was born on 16^th August 1986, in Celaya, Guanajuato. Elisa Najera is currently studying ‘engineering in food industries’. In the future, she wants to open her own business, in the same area in which she is studying, along with her family, especially her mother, who is a chef.