Olivia Culpo becomes Miss U.S.A

20-year-old student Olivia Culpo has beaten 50 others to be crowned the winner of the 2012 edition of the Miss USA beauty pageant.

Culpo, who represented the tiny state of Rhode Island, won the competition on Sunday, June 3, 2012, in Las Vegas.

The Boston University student will take a year off from her studies to tackle her duties as Miss USA and represent the country in the 61st Miss Universe contest in December.

Speaking shortly after the event, Culpo said she aspires to be more like Hollywood icon Audrey Hepburn, noting her many years of volunteer work.

As for her win, the model said ‘I was just so surprised, so shocked, so honored to be there‘.

Miss USA 2012 - Olivia Culpo

The new queen receives her crown...

Culpo in her swim wear...

2012 Miss USA Olivia Culpo swimsuit photos as Miss Rhode Island

It was the creme de la creme of sashes and lashes bashes in Las Vegas last night as 50 of America’s most beautiful women competed for the crown of Miss USA 2012. Coming out on top was cellist and self-described nerd Olivia Culpo, a sophomore at Boston University representing the smallest state in the union, Rhode Island.

The 20-year-old brunette lists Aubrey Hepburn as her inspiration and says that as soon as the festivities are over in Las Vegas, one of the first things she plans to do is visit Tiffany & Company in New York City to recreate the iconic opening scene from Breakfast at Tiffany’s. “She was beautiful on the outside, but also beautiful on the inside,” said Culpo of Hepburn.

And speaking of beautiful on the outside, Olivia Culpo participated with a number of her fellow Miss USA contestants in a Kooey Swimwear Fashion Show at Trump International Hotel in Las Vegas on May 23.

Olivia Culpa wore a revealing violet and bright yellow bikini and looked ***literally*** flawless.

And let’s not forget “beautiful on the inside!” Olivia showed off her inner beauty in the interview portion of the show when celebrity interviewer Rob Kardashian asked her a difficult question (See: Carrie Prejean) posed by a pageant follower on Twitter, “Would you feel it would be fair that a transgender woman wins the Miss USA title over a natural-born woman?” (The question was obviously inspired by the recent controversy in Canada in which the Miss Universe Organization decided to allow transgender contestants.)

“I do think that that would be fair,” she answered without hesitation, “but I can understand that people would be a little apprehensive to take that road because there is a tradition of natural-born women, but today where there are so many surgeries and so many people out there who have a need to change for a happier life, I do accept that because I believe it’s a free country.”

And here’s a video interview in which Olivia reveals that she aspires to be the female Albert Einstein in addition to voicing her opinion on pornography and marijuana:

(Her pageant coach must have drilled her on the “free country” parachute!)

Olivia swapped out her Kooey purple and yellow bikini for a tough pink swimsuit during the Miss USA Preliminary Competition held May 30 at The Theater of Performing Arts at Planet Hollywood Resort and Casino in Las Vegas:

Culpo was the epitome of strength and confidence with her bold posture combined with her choice of swimsuit and some imposing stiletto high heels!

But, just in case you prefer to measure beauty with clothes on, here are a couple photos of Miss USA 2012 Olivia Culpa in her fuchsia formal evening gown both during competition and after:

And as a parting glance, here is one looooooong last look at your Miss USA 2012…

Olivia Culpo: Three Things to Know About the New Miss USA

The new Miss USA is a Boston University student who believes transgender beauty pageant contestants should be able to compete. What else is there to know about the Rhode Island native beyond her affinity for sashes and crowns?

1. You could call her a band geek
Ever heard of Carnegie Hall? Or Boston Symphony Hall? Well, Olivia Culpo has played both of them – and she only recently turned 20! Coming from a musical background (her parents were musicians), Culpa began studying cello in the second grade. She has since played in hundreds of concerts and was accepted into the musical program in the Brevard Music Center in North Carolina.

2. She has looks and brains
While it was mentioned during the Miss USA broadcast that six of 11 contestants couldn't name the Vice President of the United States, it's safe to say Culpo wasn't one of them – she's a bit of a brainiac. After graduating high school with high honors, Culpo has continued her high marks at Boston University. As a sophomore, she has made the dean's list in every semester. She even speaks a little bit of Italian!

3. She loves Audrey Hepburn
Culpo (who is single) answered during the broadcast that she knows "so many Audrey Hepburn quotes." During the interview process of the show she even sang a song from the 1957 movie Funny Face that Fred Astaire sang to the iconic star. "She was beautiful on the outside but also beautiful on the inside," Culpo said. During her reign she said she plans on visiting Tiffany & Co. in New York City, the site of the opening scene of Hepburn's classic film Breakfast at Tiffany's.

Olivia Culpo, Miss USA 2012 Photos

Luka Rocco Magnotta Will Not Fight Extradition to Canada

 

Luka Rocco Magnotta could be back in Canada very soon.

Magnotta, who is accused of the grisly murder of Lin Jun - a 33-year-old Chinese student living in Montreal - made his first court appearance Tuesday after being arrested at German Internet cafe a day earlier.

The German prosecutor responsible for his case says Magnotta will not be fighting extradition and could be in Canada within a week.

"The suspect said that he will not fight the extradition," senior Berlin prosecutor Martin Steltner said in an interview with the Globe and Mail.

"The extradition process is very complicated in Germany, and it can take months, even years - but not in this case," he said. "It will be much easier to get him to Canada."

If Magnotta did fight extradition, the whole process could have taken up to one year.

Gary Botting, a Vancouver criminal defence and extradition lawyer told Yahoo! Canada News that Canada is the only potential destination for Magnotta. Even though Lin was a Chinese citizen living in Canada, China could not request extradition to that country.

"It's Canada all the way - Canadian crime, extradition to Canada. The citizenship of victim is irrelevant," Botting said.

 

Magnotta spent Monday night in a jail cell in Tempelhof, in western Berlin, deliberately choosing solitary confinement, German police said. Later on Tuesday he will be transferred to a pretrial detention jail near the courthouses in Moabit, in central Berlin.

Steltner told the Globe that Magnotta admitted to his identity in court, but had not revealed anything about the murder or his flight to Europe: "He didn't say anything about the crime in Canada."

Magnotta will "probably not be transported commercially" and will be sent to Canada on a specially chartered flight.