Miss New York Nina Davuluri poses for photographers following her crowning as Miss America 2014.
The Miss America pageant has crowned its first winner of Indian heritage.
Moments
after winning the 2014 crown, 24 year-old Nina Davuluri described how
delighted she is that the nearly century-old pageant sees beauty and
talent of all kinds.
“I’m so happy this organization
has embraced diversity,” she said in her first press conference after
winning the crown in Atlantic City, New Jersey’s Boardwalk Hall. “I’m
thankful there are children watching at home who can finally relate to a
new Miss America.”
The 24 year-old Miss New York’s talent routine was a Bollywood fusion dance.
The
native of Syracuse, New York wants to be a doctor, and is applying to
medical school, with the help of a $50,000 (38,000) scholarship she won
as part of the pageant title.
She is the second
consecutive Miss New York to win the Miss America crown, succeeding
Mallory Hagan, who was selected in January when the pageant was still
held in Las Vegas. The Miss America Organization will compensate Hagan
for her shortened reign.
Ms. Davuluri’s victory led
to some negative comments on Twitter from users upset that someone of
Indian heritage had won the pageant. She brushed those aside.
“I have to rise above that,” she said. “I always viewed myself as first and foremost American.”
“I
am very, very, happy for the girl. It was her dream and it was
fulfilled,” 89 year-old V. Koteshwaramma said by phone from her home in
the city of Vijayawada, Andhra Pradesh.
She said
there are numerous doctors in the family, both in the U.S. and India,
and that if her granddaughter wants to become one, “I am sure she will
do it.”
Ms. Davuluri had planned to go to the scene
of a devastating boardwalk fire in the New Jersey communities of Seaside
Park and Seaside Heights Monday afternoon. But pageant officials
cancelled that visit after learning that Governor Chris Christie was
making cabinet officials available at that same time to business owners
victimized by the fire.
Ms. Davuluri will visit at an unscheduled future date, pageant officials said early on Monday.
She will still make the traditional frolic in the Atlantic City surf Monday morning.
In
the run-up to the pageant, much attention was given to Miss Kansas,
Theresa Vail, the Army sergeant who was believed to have been the first
Miss America contestant to openly display tattoos. She has the Serenity
Prayer on her rib cage, and a smaller military insignia on the back of
one shoulder.
Ms. Vail won a nationwide “America’s Choice” vote to advance as a semi-finalist, but failed to make it into the Top 10.
In
a Twitter message on Sunday before the finals began, Ms. Vail wrote:
“Win or not tonight, I have accomplished what I set out to do. I have
empowered women. I have opened eyes.”
Ms. Jones made
it into the top 5 wearing a bedazzled knee brace. She tore knee
ligaments on Thursday while rehearsing her baton-twirling routine, which
she executed flawlessly on Sunday night.
The
pageant had pitted 53 contestants one from each state, plus District of
Columbia, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands in swimsuit, evening
gown, talent and interview competitions.
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