Amelia Vega
Amelia Vega was born on November 7, 1984 in Santiago de los Caballeros, Santiago, Dominican Republic. She gained fame and celebrity status when she won the 2003 Miss Universe Beauty Pageant at the age of 18, as well as being the first Dominican to ever win the said title.
She is 6-feet tall, and with the matching beauty and grace, Amelia Vega went to train for pageantry in Venezuela, and she was able to beat a Venezuelan model in her first pageant win. As a result, the Venezuelan school now altered its rules and banned foreign contestants from training under their roof.
Before she entered the prestigious beauty pageant, Amelia Vega had plans of going to college and major in TV production. In the same year when she was crowned Miss Universe, she became a spokesmodel for Cover Girl, standing next in line with Christie Brinkley, Tyra Banks and Elsa Benitez. Amelia Vega is also an aspiring singer and is currently working on her first album.
She also won Best in National Costume, making her third among the Miss Universe title holders who won the said award. The first was Porntip Nakhirunkanok of Thailand in 1988, followed by Wendy Fitzwiliam of Trinidad and Tobago in 1998.
Upon winning the crown, Amelia Vega became busy roaming around the world working with international organizations such as the Global Health Council, God’s Love We Deliver, Cable Positive, Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Founation, and amfAR. Her tasks basically dealt with promoting awareness and a better understanding and acceptance of HIV and AIDS in order to help the victims of the said illness as well as their families. Amelia Vega also represented the Miss Universe Organization alongside Tami Farrell of Miss Teen USA 2003, and Susie Castillo, Miss USA 2003.
Amelia Vega displayed her talents in modeling and singing in her activities as well. She launched her singing career in the 2004 Miss Dominican Republic, where she crowned her successor, Larimar Fiallo. She also posed for magazines including Cosmopolitan, Caras, and Vanidades. She as well became a face on Dominican television, when she became the host of Voces de America, a reality show aired in Telemundo network, followed by the Mexican reality show, Suegras.
The lights of the big screen opened doors for Amelia Vega in 2005, when she was cast on a starring role on the movie The Lost City which was directed by Andy Garcia. Her most recent project was Homie Spumoni opposite Donald Faison which was released on September 2007.
Amelia Vega’s father is a medical practitioner in the Dominican Republic. Her mother was also a national titleholder who represented the country in another beauty pageant, Miss World, in 1980.
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Esta escorpiana ha sabido ganarse un lugar en el mundo. A la edad de 18 años fue coronada con el título de Miss Universo, convirtiéndose en la primera dominicana en ganar ese importante concurso de belleza internacional,donde impactó al jurado con su 1.84 metros de estatura (6’1 pies). Hoy es una mujer multifacética, que modela, actúa, conduce shows de TV y apoya organizaciones humanitarias. Su trayectoria. Amelia Vega nació el 7 de noviembre de 1984 en Santo Domingo, República Dominicana. Su madre, Patricia Polanco, representó a la República Dominicana en 1980 en el certamen de Miss Mundo, y su padre es un médico general. Tiene una media hermana, una abuela y un tío famoso: el cantautor, productor y ganador de un Grammy, Juan Luis Guerra Antes de ponerse la corona, Amelia había terminado sus estudios secundarios y planeaba continuar su educación para obtener un título en producción de televisión. Pero el destino quiso lo contrario. Como la Miss Universo 2003, viajó extensamente trabajando con reconocidas organizaciones internacionales de VIH/SIDA. Como oradora y ´celebridad´, Vega fue responsable de trabajar con los medios de comunicación de manera global para generar una mejor comprensión y aceptación del SIDA y del VIH y de su prevención mientras ayudaba a crear conciencia para obtener recursos y fondos para estas organizaciones claves. Entre los países que visitó durante su reinado figuran China, Canadá, Indonesia, México, Puerto Rico, Tailandia y Vietnam. Pese a vivir en distintos sitios, Amelia nunca olvidó su tierra natal, que siempre le dio su más cálido recibimiento. En el 2003 le dieron una medalla de honor en los Juegos Panamericanos que se realizaron en Santo Domingo, y ese mismo año fue co-anfitriona del Festival Presidente de Música Latina, que se celebra cada dos años en la República Dominicana durante tres días. Esta sensual trigueña de 22 años también forma parte de la lista de reconocidas modelos que representan la marca de cosméticos de belleza Cover Girl, con la cual ha hecho varias campañas publicitarias. Su belleza ha cubierto las portadas de numerosas revistas internacionales, como Cosmopolitan, Caras y Vanidades y las dominicanas Mujer Única y Oh! Magazine, así como la portada del libro ´Belleza Universal´ entre otras.