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Materano, who has lived in Diego Martín (northwest) for six years, used a translator during the question and answer session of the contest, but his representative, Charisse Parsons, told AFP that “he speaks English wonderfully well.” He explained that the rules of the contest created in Thailand do not prevent the Venezuelan from representing Trinidad and Tobago.

The Miss Grand International pageant says it wants to show “a modern woman who must be beautiful, skilled and intelligent so that she can be an icon for women around the world.” The choice of the Venezuelan generated debates on social networks.

After oil, beauty queens may be Venezuela's biggest export: Women from the South American nation have captured seven Miss Universe titles and crown holders have gone on to notable careers as actresses, journalists and even presidential candidates.

When the annual Miss Venezuela pageant is aired on television, millions tune in, paralyzed in suspense as contestants parade on stage in neon-colored bikinis while their measurements are read aloud and they answer questions like how they would draw people back to the waning Roman Catholic church.

As the nation plummets into economic ruin, even more young women are holding fast to dreams of becoming beauty queens.

At a recent casting for the Nuestra Belleza Venezuela contest, a pack of teens and 20-something women donned towering heels and coated their lips in glossy pink hues before strutting in front of judges. Among them was Oxlaniela Oropeza, a law student, who said the recent Miss Venezuela scandal hadn't quashed her ambitions.

Nov. 14, 2018, 1:35 PM -04
By Associated Press

SANTIAGO, Chile — When the Miss Universe beauty pageant takes place in a few weeks, Chile will be represented by a slender brunette who has a killer smile and speaks Spanish with an unmistakable Venezuelan accent.

Andrea Diaz was born and raised in Valencia, Venezuela, where from the age of 12 she learned to sway her hips and glide gracefully down catwalks at a local modeling academy. At 19, she won a pageant organized by her hometown’s baseball team and became a goodwill ambassador for the squad.

But Diaz’s career changed course in her twenties as she moved to Panama and then Mexico for modeling jobs, which are now scarce in crisis-wracked Venezuela. Three years ago she settled down in Chile, where most of her family has also relocated.

“I represent the new Chile,” the 26-year-old said as she was training at a local gym in Santiago for the upcoming competition. “This is an inclusive country where immigrants come in search of opportunities.”