Miss World 2001

Ibiagbanidokibubo "Agbani" Asenite Darego
NIGERIA

When Agbani Darego became the first black African to win the Miss World pageant in November she had been modeling for less than a year. "It has completely blown out her wildest expectations," said Joan Ibuzo, Darego's manager. "She will be placed and written about in the Guinness Book of World Records." Darego isn't the first African to wear the Miss World crown, but she is the first black African - the continent's three previous winners included two white South Africans and one Egyptian. Though a woman from Botswana, Mpule Kwelagobe, won the Miss Universe pageant in 1999, the chances of an African being crowned Miss World were seen as pretty slim, according to oddsmakers. The contest's official bookmaker rated Darego a longshot at 66-1. The favorite was a 19-year-old blonde from the United States, Carrie Stroup, closely followed by Miss Chile, Christiane Balmelli, another blonde. The 18-year-old Nigerian first aimed at stardom in January 2000, when she vied for her country's slot in the annual Face of Africa pageant. A faculty strike had closed the university she attended in southeastern Nigeria, and Darego took the chance to travel to the Lagos competition. She made it to the finals before being cut. Ibuzo was waiting outside, and the two agreed Darego would next join the Most Beautiful Girl in Nigeria pageant. The winner of this competition, run by Ibuzo's agency, Silverbird Productions, would enter the lucrative Miss Universe and Miss World contests. After that, Darego's success was swift. She won the Silverbird crown and entered the Miss Universe pageant, where she made it to the semifinals - along the way she caught the eye of Donald Trump, and Naomi Campbell invited her to model at a benefit show in Barcelona. Then in Sun City, South Africa, before an estimated 1.2 billion television viewers, Darego beat out 92 other contestants for the Miss World title. "Black is beautiful," she said before being crowned. With the prize came $100,000, international recognition and the spokeswomanship of the Miss World charity, which is devoted to children's causes.