Only one of world's most beautiful women wins

Ecuador's clairvoyants predicted the next Miss Universe, as 80 beauty contestants killed time and nerves.

Ecuador's clairvoyants predicted the next Miss Universe, as 80 beauty contestants killed time and nerves with everything from yoga to chocolate Tuesday, awaiting the decision of the jury.

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Fifteen finalists have already been chosen, but their names will not be announced until 8:00 pm (0100 GMT), before a television audience of 1.5 billion in 150 countries.

The show is owned by New York real estate developer Donald Trump, who recently married a model. He charged 7,600 spectators 250 dollars a seat for the glitzy, tux-and-gown event.

A panel of judges, including actress Bo Derek and music producer Emilio Estefan, are expected to pick the new Miss Universe at 10:00 pm (0300 GMT) after the candidates strut along a 15-meter (50-foot) runway.

Until then, the candidates are locked in their rooms. Some read. Some pray. Others can finally eat.

Miss Chile, Gabriela Barros, confessed to putting a chocolate bar under her belt.

"It calms my nerves," she said.

Other beauty queens, whom she did not name, "Eat chocolates like crazy." The reason: those long rehearsals. "They lost some weight," she said.

All Ecuador is on tenterhooks, and everyone, it seems, has a favorite.

The public got a peek at a rehearsal Thursday and gave the loudest applause to Fatos Segmen of Turkey, Yanina Gonzalez of Paraguay, along with Susana Rivandeneira of Ecuador.

Other contenders included Miss Venezuela, Ana Karina Anez, Colombia's Catherine Daza and Miss United States, Shandi Finnessey.

Miss Ecuador also scored with self-appointed "Miss-ologists" as well as local fortune tellers -- both of whom predicted the local girl would win.

An Internet survey placed Thailand's Morakot Aime Kittisara and Mexico's Rosalva Luna in the running for the crown, with 500 diamonds and 120 pearls valued at 200,000 dollars.

Miss Ukraine, Oleksandra Nikolayenko, holed up in her room alone -- since none of her family was able to make the trip to the Exposition Center in the Midst of the World 15 kilometers (nine miles) northwest of Quito.

"That makes me sad," she said, despite being one of the favorites.

Also suffering regrets was Miss Bolivia, Gabriela Oviedo, who lashed out at journalists' questions about her country. She said the journalists acted as though all Bolivians were Indians.

She went on to explain that La Paz may be full of poor, short people, but that in the east, people are tall, white and speak English.

The accusations of racism in Ecuador, which has a large native population, were so loud that Bolivia's vice-minister of culture, Maria Alvarez Plata, stepped in to explain why she thought journalists had misunderstood the young lady: "She expressed herself in English," Alvarez said.

Another with regrets was former juror Kwame Jackson, a finalist on "The Apprentice," in which she appeared with Trump. Jackson was removed from the jury for speaking with workers at the Marriott Hotel where the 80 beauty queens are staying.

Still on the jury are actress Daisy Fuentes, Thom Allcock of Rolling Stone magazine, Hearst magazines editor Kristen Ingersoll and Billy Bush of "Access Hollywood," as well as Miss Universe 1998, Wendy Fitzwilliam.

Assigned to soothe the nerves was yoga instructor Marco de la Cruz.

"My mission is to keep their courage up," he told El Universo de Guayaquil daily.

Keeping the peace are 1,400 police officers, Civil Defense, firefighters and the Red Cross, organizers said.