Miss Vietnam 2008’s winners – Nguyen Thuy Van, Tran Thi Thuy Dung and Phan Hoang Minh Thu (L-R) – are banned from this year’s Miss World pageant.

Authorities Tuesday announced the winners of this year’s Miss Vietnam contest would be banned from participating in the upcoming Miss World pageant in South Africa in December.

The ministry’s Department of Performing Arts has sent a dispatch to the Elite Vietnam Company, which is responsible for selecting Vietnamese candidates for the Miss World contest, to publicize the decision.

The company’s CEO, Thuy Nga said the company was looking for other legitimate candidates throughout the country and would submit the nomination list to the ministry in the next two days.

The department’s head Le Ngoc Cuong said only winners of nationwide beauty contests could apply for permission to attend Miss World pageants.

The candidates must also have invitations from the pageant’s organizers and be fluent in English to be considered.

The ministry said Miss Vietnam 2008’s organizers had broken the contest guidelines as they “deliberately changed the requirements on the education level of contestants.”

Dung, crowned Miss Vietnam 2008 on August 31, is facing dethronement as it was revealed she didn’t graduate from high school.

She has been accused of faking her high school academic records to qualify for the beauty contest.

Source: TN, TT