THE 25th Miss Model of the World (MMW) has ended; festivities were held in China Folk Culture Village in Shenzhen Wednesday night with Margarita Pavlushina from Tatarstan winning first prize.

    Margaret Koomson from Ghana and Tetiana Khorosha from Crimea won the second and the third prizes, respectively.

    This year’s MMW gathered models from more than 60 countries and regions in Shenzhen. Wearing folk dresses, contestants performed belly dances and artistic gymnastics in the final round. They also displayed various swimsuits to the delight of the audience.

    Shenzhen Executive Vice Mayor Lu Ruifeng said at Wednesday’s awarding ceremony that the MMW’s role has been widely acknowledged in promoting peaceful cultural exchange, developing beauty-based economics and guiding citizens into the latest fashions.

    Shenzhen has played host to the MMW for eight years. The city’s six emerging industries of strategic importance, including the fashion industry, account for more than 30 percent of its GDP, according to Lu.

    “Shenzhen has been making efforts to pursue innovation-driven development and become a model city in China,” said Lu.

    The MMW is recognized as one of the top beauty contests in the world. The other two are Miss World and Miss Universe.

    The MMW entered China in 2004.

    (Martin Li)