Miss USA 2008 was the 57thMiss USA pageant, held inLas Vegas,Nevada on April 11, 2008.[2] At the conclusion of the final night of competition,Crystle Stewart ofTexas was crowned the winner by outgoing titleholderRachel Smith ofTennessee. Crystle represented the United States at theMiss Universe 2008 pageant, which was held inVietnam, where she placed in the Top 10. This was also the first time in the pageant's 56-year history that two consecutive women ofAfrican Americans have been crowned.
For the first time, the competition was broadcast in High Definition.
Brother/sister duoDonny andMarie Osmond hosted the live telecast for the first time, andFinger Eleven performed their single "Paralyzer".[1][4]Rihanna's song Umbrella was used during the evening gown competition.
During the final show on April 11, the fifteen delegates with the highest average scores from the preliminary competition were announced. The top fifteen competed in the swimsuit competition. The top ten delegates from swimsuit competed in evening gown. The top five delegates from the evening gown competition (not averaged composite scores from both competitions) competed in the final question round to determine the winner. The judges' composite score was shown after each round of competition for only the second time since 2002.
Due to accounting errors, Christina Silva was crowned Miss California USA. When the mistake was discovered a week after the pageant, the real winner Raquel Beezley assumed the title.[8]
Three contestants previously competed in theMiss Texas USA and/orMiss Texas Teen USA pageants before winning titles in other states:
Candice Crawford (Missouri) placed third runner-up at Miss Texas Teen USA 2003 and 2005. She is the sister ofGossip Girl actorChace Crawford.[18]
Elisabeth Crawford (Michigan) was a non-finalist at Miss Texas USA 2004 to 2006
Veronica Grabowski (Nevada) competed at the Miss Texas Teen USA 2003 and Miss Texas USA 2007 pageants, finishing as a semifinalist in both years.
Amy Diaz (Rhode Island) and Danielle Roundtree (New York) competed at Miss Florida USA 2007. Diaz placed third runner-up and Roundtree was a non-finalist.[19]
^ab"New Miss California winner named after accounting error". Associated Press. 2007-12-04.
^"Owner of Pinque wins Miss Colorado USA crown". The Daily Sentinel. 2007-10-30.
^Stina Sieg (31 October 2007)."Businesswoman named Miss Colorado".The Post Independent. Glenwood Springs and Garfield County, CO, USA: Swift Communications, Inc.Archived from the original on 1 March 2021. Retrieved15 April 2020.
