Miss USA 2005

Updated on Oct 31, 2023

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Date April 11, 2005 Entrants 51		Broadcaster NBC, WBAL-TV Placements 15

Presenters Nancy O'Dell and Billy Bush Venue Hippodrome Theatre, Baltimore, Maryland

Miss USA 2005, the 54th Miss USA pageant, was held in Baltimore, Maryland in April 11, 2005. It was won by Chelsea Cooley of North Carolina.

Fifty-one state titleholders competed for the title of Miss USA in the Hippodrome Theatre on April 11, 2005. The hosts were Access Hollywood stars Nancy O'Dell and Billy Bush.

This was the first of two years the pageant was held in Maryland, as it was held in Los Angeles, California in 2004. The new location was announced in October 2004.

Competition

After the delegate introductions and opening number, the top fifteen contestants were announced. These girls went on to compete in the evening gown competition, where they displayed an evening gown of their choice and were judged in poise and grace. This year's gown competition was notable for two daring gowns, that of Brenda Brabham, Miss Pennsylvania USA, and Meaghan Jarensky, Miss New York USA. Brabham's gold gown featured a bra-style top connected to a flowing skirt with high slit, revealing most of her top half like a swimsuit, and Jarensky's silver Graecan gown also was an unusual cut.

The second cut followed, with the delegates being narrowed down to ten. The finalists then competed in the swimsuit competition, wearing specially designed floral swimsuits from Endless Sun. Brittany Hogan, Miss California USA dropped her cloth as she walked in swimsuit, but despite this went on to place as 1st runner up. Miss New York USA, Meaghan Jarensky almost tripped on the cloth but fortunately did not.

The final five were then announced, and the delegates competed in interview with the "final question". The questions were all written by Miss USA 2004, Shandi Finnessey and the top 5. Finally, the runners-up were announced, and Chelsea Cooley of North Carolina was crowned Miss USA.

Judges

The celebrity panel of final competition judges was announced on 10 March 2005. The judges were:

Michael Phelps - Olympic gold medalist swimmer

Molly Sims - star of NBC show Las Vegas

Sugar Ray Leonard - boxer

Frederic Fekkai - beauty expert

Pamela Dennis - fashion designer

Raj Bhakta - The Apprentice contestant

Ksenia Maksimova - model

Brody Hutzler - actor on Days of Our Lives

Delegates

The Miss USA 2005 delegates were:

Pre-pageant special

Six Miss USA contestants competed in a special edition of Fear Factor.

The contestants involved were:

Miss Fear Factor: Sarah-Elizabeth Langford (Miss District of Columbia USA 2005) 2nd place tie: Brittany Hogan (Miss California USA 2005), 3rd place: Meaghan Jarensky (Miss New York USA 2005) 4th place: Laci Scott (Miss Oklahoma USA 2005) 5th place: Cristina Nardozzi (Miss Massachusetts USA 2005) 6th place: Kristen Johnson (Miss Kentucky USA 2005)

Stunts

Stunt #1 (Water beams): Contestants had to work their way around a square-shaped beam structure and collect up to ten flags before jumping into the water below. The beams were rigged with high-pressure jets that sprayed water during the stunt. The four contestants who completed the stunt in the fastest time or those that collected the flags the fastest before falling advanced to the next round. Stunt #2 (Triple Dump Tunnel) Contestants fought a high pressure water hose to make their way through an acrylic glass tunnel while attempting to pull down three chains and collect a key from each. The hose stopped after the retrieval of the second key. Each time they retrieved a key, a bucket containing 55 gallons of disgusting contents would be dumped on them. The first bucket contained dead fish and fish guts, the second bucket contained fish oil, and the third bucket contained red worms and super worms. At the end of the tunnel the contestants had to use the keys to open three locks, open a door, and grab a flag. The three that completed this stunt the fastest advanced to the finals. Stunt #3 (Helicopter net-cage) Contestants had to work their way around the outside of a square-shaped cage made of cargo netting suspended under a helicopter, attempting to release 5 flags from the sides of the cage and 1 flag from the bottom of the cage. The one who released the most flags the fastest before falling into the water below won the competition.