Another Rare Hungarian Beauty Pageant From The 2000s

We recently showcased a vintage beauty pageant from Jász-Nagykun-Szolnok in the 90s. Following on from that, let’s look at how beauty pageants progressed from there into the 2000s. 

In 2002, the Tisza Lake beauty contest was held in Abádszalók for the thirteenth time in Új Néplap. More than twenty people had previously indicated their intention to enter, and in the end thirty-one marched onto the stage.

There were competitors from Budapest, Debrecen, Szeged, but also from Sopron and Zalaegerszeg.

These were the winners of the Lake Tisza beauty pageant: second lady of the court Klaudia Kontra (left), beauty queen Krisztina Polgár (center) and first lady of the court Tímea Kacziba - with presenter András Csonka and musician-producer Kozsó.

Prizes, gifts, trips, and vacations awaited the participants, and the winners were taken on a horse-drawn carriage parade, after which a reception was given in their honor. The parade in evening dress began after nine in the evening, where the result of the public vote was revealed.  

Searching further in the archive, we found another beauty contest, in 2005, where they also searched for the beauty of Lake Tisza on a warm, summer day.

A beauty pageant always has colorful and intimate moments. The contestants have to put on their make-up, brush their hair, and oil their legs and body to make themselves look their best. Some do their own makeup themselves - after all, they know the best colors and contours. 

Below are photos that captured some of the best moments of the beauty contest in Abádszalók and give bit more of a look into what beauty pageant in Hungary looked like in the 2000s.