Miss Universe 1979
| Miss Universe 1979 | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Date | 20 July 1979[a] |
| Presenters | |
| Entertainment | Donny Osmond |
| Venue | Perth Entertainment Centre, Perth, Australia |
| Broadcaster | CBS (international) Seven Network (TVW) (official broadcaster) |
| Entrants | 75 |
| Placements | 12 |
| Debuts |
|
| Withdrawals |
|
| Returns |
|
| Winner | Maritza Sayalero Venezuela |
| Congeniality | Yurika Kuroda (Japan) |
| Best National Costume | Elizabeth Busti (Uruguay) |
| Photogenic | Carolyn Seaward (England) |
Miss Universe 1979 was the 28th Miss Universe pageant, held at the Perth Entertainment Centre in Perth, Australia, on 20 July 1979.[a]
Margaret Gardiner of South Africa crowned her successor Maritza Sayalero of Venezuela. This marks as the first time a woman from Venezuela won the pageant. It was the first time in the pageant's history that the event was held in Australia.
Results
Placements
| Placement | Contestant |
|---|---|
| Miss Universe 1979 |
|
| 1st Runner-Up |
|
| 2nd Runner-Up |
|
| 3rd Runner-Up |
|
| 4th Runner-Up |
|
| Top 12 |
|
Final Scores
| Country/Territory | Interview | Swimsuit | Evening Gown | Average |
|---|---|---|---|---|
.svg.png){kind=small} Venezuela[2] |
9.362 (1) | 9.135 (1) | 9.416 (1) | 9.304 (1) |
 Bermuda[2] |
8.872 (2) | 9.027 (2) | 9.100 (2) | 9.000 (2) |
 England[2] |
8.671 (3) | 8.591 (4) | 8.936 (3) | 8.733 (3) |
 Brazil[2] |
8.509 (4) | 8.764 (3) | 8.818 (4) | 8.697 (4) |
 Sweden[2] |
8.300 (5) | 8.127 (7) | 8.409 (6) | 8.279 (5) |
.svg.png){kind=small} South Africa[2] |
7.918 (10) | 8.330 (5) | 8.454 (5) | 8.234 (6) |
.svg.png){kind=small} Belize[2] |
8.118 (7) | 8.279 (6) | 8.118 (10) | 8.171 (7) |
 United States[2] |
8.100 (8) | 7.709 (12) | 8.335 (7) | 8.048 (8) |
 Germany[2] |
8.125 (6) | 7.882 (10) | 8.118 (10) | 8.042 (9) |
 Scotland[2] |
7.764 (11) | 8.118 (8) | 8.218 (8) | 8.033 (10) |
 Argentina[2] |
8.009 (9) | 8.045 (9) | 8.021 (12) | 8.025 (11) |
 Wales[2] |
7.380 (12) | 7.818 (11) | 8.150 (9) | 7.783 (12) |
Contestants
Antigua – Elsie Maynard- Argentina – Adriana Álvarez
Aruba – Lugina Vilchez.svg.png)
Australia – Kerrie Dunderdale
Austria – Karin Zorn
Bahamas – Lolita Ambrister
Barbados – Barbara Bradshaw.svg.png)
Belgium – Christine Cailliau- Belize – Sarita Acosta
- Bermuda – Gina Swainson
Bolivia – María Luisa Rendón.svg.png)
Bophuthatswana – Alina Moeketse.svg.png)
Brazil – Martha da Costa
British Virgin Islands – Eartha Ferdinand.svg.png)
Canada – Heidi Quiring
Chile – Cecilia Serrano
Colombia – Ana Milena Parra
Costa Rica – Carla Facio
Denmark – Lone Jørgensen
Dominican Republic – Elizabeth García.svg.png)
Ecuador – Margarita Plaza
El Salvador – Ivette López- England – Carolyn Seaward
Fiji – Tanya Whiteside
Finland – Päivi Uitto
France – Sylvie Paréra
Greece – Katia Koukidou
Guam – Marie Cruz
Guatemala – Michelle Domínguez
Holland – Eunice Bharatsingh.svg.png)
Honduras – Gina Weidner.svg.png)
Hong Kong – Olivia Chang
Iceland – Halldóra Jónsdóttir
India – Swaroop Sampat
Ireland – Lorraine O'Connor
Israel – Vered Polgar
Italy – Elvira Puglisi.svg.png)
Japan – Yurika Kuroda
Malaysia – Irene Wong
Malta – Dian Borg Bartolo
Mauritius – Maria Allard
Mexico – Blanca Díaz
New Zealand – Andrea Kake[3]
Northern Mariana Islands – Barbara Torres
Norway – Unni Øglænd
Panama – Yahel Dolande
Papua New Guinea – Molly Misbut.svg.png)
Paraguay – Patricia Lohman
Peru – Jacqueline Brahm.svg.png)
Philippines – Criselda Cecilio.svg.png)
Portugal – Marta Mendoça de Gouveia.svg.png)
Puerto Rico – Teresa López- Réunion – Isabelle Jacquemart
Saint Kitts – Cheryl Chaderton.svg.png)
Saint Vincent – June de Nobriga- Scotland – Lorraine Davidson
Singapore – Elaine Tan- South Africa – Veronica Wilson
.svg.png)
South Korea – Jae-hwa Seo.svg.png)
Spain – Gloria Valencia
Sri Lanka – Vidyahari Vanigasooriya
Surinam – Sergine Lieuw-A-Len- Sweden – Annette Ekström
.svg.png)
Switzerland – Birgit Krahl
Tahiti – Fabienne Tapare
Thailand – Wongduan Kerdpoom
Transkei – Lindiwe Bam
Trinidad and Tobago – Marie Diaz
Turkey – Fusin Dermitan.png)
United States – Mary Therese Friel
United States Virgin Islands – Linda Torres
Uruguay – Elizabeth Busti- Venezuela – Maritza Sayalero
- Wales – Beverly Hobson
- West Germany – Andrea Hontschik
Notes
- 1 2 The event was held at 8:00 am Australia Time (UTC+08:00); for the Americas, this was July 19 in their local times including the United States.
References
- 1 2 3 4 5 "Universe contestants endure stage fright". Wisconsin State Journal. 21 July 1979. p. 3. Retrieved 16 May 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 "Miss Universe 1979 - Full Show". tttpageant. March 3, 2013. Retrieved July 4, 2025 – via YouTube.
- ↑ "Beauty rewarded". The Press. Christchurch, New Zealand. 5 April 1979. p. 1. Retrieved 29 January 2026 – via Papers Past.