San Juan, Puerto Rico - When contestants take the stage on Friday to compete for the Miss Universe title, women from more than half of the world's countries will be missing.
There will be no Miss Great Britain, no Miss Kenya, no Miss Nepal, no Miss Saudia Arabia, no Miss Haiti and no Miss Australia, among others.
The reasons range from glitches in organising national pageants to political instability, philosophical objections or simply a lack of interest. The United Nations has 189 member states, but there are only 77 contestants this year at the Miss Universe pageant in Puerto Rico.
The number of women in this year's pageant - the 50th held by Miss Universe - is slightly down from the 79 who competed last year in Cyprus and the 83 who participated in Trinidad and Tobago in 1999.
Australia fielded a contestant last year, but this year the organiser in Sydney, Jim Davie, turned down a license to hold a national pageant.
"In recent years the pageant has been seen by potential sponsors, and the general public, as a Third World event, and out of touch with a modern society," Davie said. "The Australian media has largely ignored the event, which has made fund-raising to cover costs impossible. Interest among contestants has also declined."
Britain participated last year, but this year, the national director was unable to hold a pageant, organisers said.
"I guess he couldn't get it together," said Annette Cammer, Miss Universe's director of international pageants.
The Miss Universe Organisation, based in New York, is jointly owned by entrepreneur Donald Trump and the US television network CBS.
Cuba doesn't participate because the American organisation doesn't deal with countries that don't have diplomatic relations with the United States, Cammer said.
Haiti isn't fielding a contestant because no promoter has taken an interest, "probably because of the difficult economic situation we are in," said Culture and Communication Minister Guy Paul.
In many Arab countries of the Middle East, beauty pageants simply aren't considered acceptable. In Saudi Arabia and Iran, it's unthinkable for women to leave home without being covered head-to-toe - let alone parade around in bikinis.
From Africa, seven countries are represented. Those missing include nations that have faced extreme poverty and war - such as Congo, Burundi and Somalia.
Contest organisers said Miss Mozambique didn't come because the local affiliate wouldn't pay for her mother to travel with her.
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