Miss Wisconsin United States lied, cheated, scam Minneapolis Minnesota

 I attended the venue, and it seemed to be run very well. I was there with a girl who did not win and she did not feel cheated at all just out preformed by the other girls in her group.

However, we did hear that the girl who bombed her questions and came in dead last in her group was offered a title as the Miss Jr. Teen Illinois, not sure if its true but if it is that would not be fair to the girls who did win or finished ahead of her. That may be a reason that someone would think that the directors had a favorite.

The person who filed this initial report is not only being a "poor sport," but clearly, is not very versed in pageantry.  The judges decide whether or not an answer to the question is what they deem a contestant demonstrating the criteria of "thinking on her feet," and in many cases in pageants, it is often not content, rather it is presentation that makes the difference. 

As for the comment that contestants/winners were "fat and unathletic" that is blatantly false... as the photo demonstrates.  The person who authored this clearly is out to soil the pageant's reputation, however, did not take the time to realize that a picture is worth a thousand words and in this case, it is clear that the author of the complaint is either looking for a skeleton to win the competition or just a very bad liar.  In fact all of the contestants in the competition had great figures as demonstrated in the swimsuit competition.  And in point of fact, being fit & athletic for your specific body type, does not mean you have to be a small size, however, all the

contestants looked great.  

As an audience member, I could not help but notice that there was not much of an audience due to the event falling on Mother's day, however, having said that, the venue charges for it's rental and ticket sales generate the revenue to pay the facility.  Unfortunately in this case, it was very apparent that the event had only sold a hanful of seats as there were more empty seats than filled.  But the fact that the person placing the complaint made mention of this detail, indicates to me that we are going beyond sour grapes here.  Why would anyone want to

speak against a fund raiser for the Milwaukee Art Museum & American Cancer Society when it was clearly so disappointing that the venue did not sell?

As for the comments that the director or staff, had "their favorites" or anything along those lines.... this is a common comment you here following every pageant.  However, that is why judges place the ballets & why the accountant does the scoring.  Directors & staff have nothing to do with that.  

The contest was sponsored and the contestants did not have to pay to enter.  This is highly unusual within the industry.  Each contestant paid a $50.00 insurance fee and recieved more than that value back in prizes, including a beautiful opening number dress.  

There is always somebody who has to spoil it for those who worked so hard and for all the other contestants and families that were proud to participate even though their condidate did not win the crown.  It is a sad fact that this has happened here, however, in my view, I am grateful that the complaintant did not win - that would be a poor representation for Wisconsin indeed, as a title holder needs to begin her journey in humility, with a grateful spirit, a represetation of which is clearly lacking in the complaint author's text. 

It would be best for all concerned that the person who placed these comments especially evaluate her comment of "fat & unathletic" women....what a hurtful thing to say, not to mention that women come in all shapes and sizes and need to be valued for having the abilty to model in a swimsuit no matter what size they are.  It's about confidence!  Clearly, the ladies chosen had it, but other contestants did as well.

So to whoever wrote this, you need to examine yourself and find out why it is so offensive to you as a woman that the ladies selected were fit and you are still knocking them, why you object to selling tickets for a charity event, and why you participated in the first place having known well in advance that the pageant question was only a portion of the score.  Perhaps in fact, it was you who did not answer your question as strongly as you thought.  What you perceive and what the judges perceive is often quite different.  Contestants often see this following pageants when they view the tape.

Sure is no surprise to hear of one more thing in Wisconsin that is corrupt.

By the way....you say we crowned "fat unathletic queens?"  Our Ms. is a professional model, size 2. Our miss, a runner and athlete, size 4. Our teen, a fitness model with a national contract, size 2, and our junior teen is a size zero.  I don't know who you are, but you clearly have a squewed view of our queens if you believe they are 'fat and unathletic.'

The Miss Wisconsin United States pageant was held in Milwaukee on May 11th, 2013 at the Milwaukee Art Museum.  Our judges were sent the contestants' bio forms one week prior to the pageant to have time to read through them and ask appropriate questions. 

1.) I, as the owner, am from Minnesota and did not know ANY of the contestants prior to this event. 

2.) As a national policy, we never give out scores for the pageant, which is common and also done in the Miss America and Miss USA pageants. You will never get scores from them either.  Contestants were also told this in their pre-event paperwork and prior to the event in orientation- so this was no shocker. I do give out judges comments and ranks so people can use them for their next pageant, but actual scores are never given out.  This is actually industry standard.  Most pageants do not give out scores.

3.) The only girl that "bombed" her question came in dead last in her age category so I'm not sure what she's talking about there. The scores were triple-checked.  The JUDGES and the JUDGES alone (5 of them) decided the winner.  Two of the judges I have never met prior to this pageant and met the morning of the pageant. I also never know who the winner is until I open the card on stage. Absolutely nothing was pre-determined.

4.) Most state pageants charge $400 or more to enter.  All of my contestants paid only $50 which is UNHEARD of for a state pageant of this caliber. That $50 covered the liability insurance fee that was demanded by our venues.  For this $50 each contestant also got 2 meals, a FREE opening number dress, and a very nice gift bag (which included rhinestone jewelry).  I paid $7,000 out of pocket for this event, so if I'm making some money somewhere....please inform me where it is because I'd sure like a piece of it. 

5.) The girls I spoke to after the pageant were all very happy with the event and most of the non-winners said they would return next year.  If there was someone unhappy about it, I certainly couldn't tell at the event. 

6.) If someone has a valid complaint, I am always willing to hear what they have to say, attempt to remedy the situation, and take that into consideration for my next event to make it better...but an "anonymous" person who is simply spouting off without letting me know their concerns first, in my opinion has no credibility.  This is clearly someone who has never competed in a pageant and has no idea what they are talking about.

Dr. Ashlea McLeod, director

How dare they run a beauty pageant like a popularity contest. I am outraged. I am more outraged that swimsuit competition is only 20%, sweetheart nobody cares what your views are! Only care about the view. Get over yourself. Or maybe get over me.

Hence the name "beauty pageant" not "popularity pageant." Enough said.