2004 Miss Universe

Background:

"The most beautiful Miss Universe I have seen in many, many years." Donald Trump on Jennifer Hawkins.

A former cheerleader for the Newcastle Knights rugby league team and the Hunter Pirates basketball teams, Jennifer Hawkins was shot to international stardom when she was crowned the 2004 Miss Universe pageant. After her reign was over, she went to make TV appearances in shows like "The Apprentice," "Deal or No Deal" and was recently one of the participants in the fourth season of Australia's "Dancing with the Stars" (she was subsequently eliminated during the April 4, 2006 episode).

For a few years, the statuesque, 6’ tall blonde has been romancing an international model and former rugby union player for a New South Wales rugby, Jake Wall (born on April 26, 1983 in Southport, Queensland), who won the Australian version of “Torvill and Dean's Dancing on Ice.”

On a recent TV interview, Hawkins said: "I found my inspiration from my current, yet long time partner, Jake Wall, who continually urged me on ... allowing me to believe in myself."


Beach Girl

Childhood and Family:

In the Australian city of Newcastle, two hours north of Sydney, Jennifer Hawkins was born on December 22, 1983. She is the youngest of four children to her parents, homemaker Gail and train company manager Robert, who remain happily married to this day. She attended Barnsley Public Primary School and then at West Wallsend High School. As a student, she was regarded as a quiet and brilliant pupil. She also earned a legal secretarial and office administration certificate.

When she is not busy, Jennifer enjoys her favorite hobby: dancing, which she had learned since the age of 5. Based in Sydney's beach suburb of Bondi, Jennifer never misses a chance to go surfing.


In Pageants

Career:

"The first time I caught a wave standing up on a board, it was such an exhilarating moment. It was like being accepted into the men's club as it is such a male-dominated sport and a fundamental way of life in Newcastle." Jennifer Hawkins.

While working for the Newcastle law firm Braye Cragg in 2001, statuesque, 6' tall blonde Jennifer Hawkins won a national dance competition. She subsequently became a cheerleader for the Newcastle Knights rugby team and was selected as Cheergirl of the Year in the National Rugby League, which landed her on the cover of Big League magazine, the National Rugby League's official publication.

Following her first publicity, Jennifer starred in a TV ad to sell merchandise for the Newcastle Knights. By this time, she has tried her hand at water sports and soon became addicted to surfing and wakeboarding. She also transformed into more serious modeling career and began entering beauty pageants. She won the third place at the Bartercard Miss Indy competition and then claimed the title of Newcastle's Miss Surfest. Meanwhile, she could be seen posing for Dirt Action magazine and Airtime Clothing.

The smart Australian beauty then moved up to the next level of beauty pageant and got her first big break when she won the Miss Australia competition, which brought her to compete at the world’s most prestigious beauty pageant, Miss Universe. In the event, held in Quito, Ecuador, in June 2004, she competed with other country’s most beautiful women wearing evening gowns, bikinis, and giving world peace speeches under the watchful eye of pageant owner Donald Trump, 7,500 spectators and an estimated 600 million TV viewers in 180 countries.

Her step to greatness eventually culminated when the judges, which included Bo Derek, The Apprentice winner Bill Rancic as well as Sports Illustrated swimsuit models Elsa Benitez and Petra Nemcova, voted her as the 52nd Miss Universe. Thus, she became the first Australian Miss Universe since Kerry Ann Wells in 1972 and became the first to win the title since Angela Visser of the Netherlands in 1989. She also brought home some expensive prizes like cosmetics, a crystal chandelier and a tiara. Additionally, she received a $45,000 film school scholarship. And during her reign, she resided in New York City in a luxury riverside apartment provided by the Miss Universe Organization.

As part of her year-long reign as Miss Universe, Jennifer has traveled to numerous countries, including Brazil, Czech Republic, Germany, Greece, Singapore, Indonesia, Canada, Trinidad and Tobago, Cuba, India, Ecuador, Mexico, Puerto Rico and had multiple trips to Thailand. She also became an ambassador for such charitable organizations as the Global Health Council, amfAR, the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation and YouthAIDS.

During her reign, Jennifer also stated that her wish was to continue modeling and become an anchorwoman for a national news show. She apparently fulfilled her ambition as a reporter when she announced that she had landed a deal with the Seven Network at the 2004 Melbourne Cup Carnival. In her first appearances, she served as a guest presenter on the network's travel show, “The Great Outdoors.” And when her reign as Miss Universe came to the end, she became a regular presenter on the show, which earned her a 2006 Logie nomination for Most Popular New Female Talent.

Jennifer has made cameo appearances in several episodes of "The Apprentice" with Donald Trump. In 2006, she was one of the participants in the fourth season of Australia's "Dancing with the Stars" and was subsequently eliminated during the April 4 episode. She also competed in a celebrity version of the game show “Deal or No Deal” called “Dancing with the Deal,” which featured celebrities from “Dancing with the Stars,” on February 15, 2006.

As for modeling, Jennifer signed with personal hygiene and skincare brand Lux as its face of Australia and New Zealand in May, 2005, and had a 3-year deal with Lovable Australia lingerie as its Australian face. In August 2006, she became ambassador for Grand Waterfront, a joint residential development between Henderson Land Development and its associate the Hong Kong & China Gas Company in Hong Kong.

Awards:
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