A tradition since the early days of the Miss World pageant has been the odds offered by betting houses on the contestants. Whilst other international pageants are also listed by betting houses, none quite match the level of that associated with the Miss World pageant.Prior to the advent of the internet and other instant mass media services, the odds offered on the delegates were more often than not the only real guide as to who were the front-runners in the competition. For the larger part the bookies were spot-on, but often they got it horribly wrong and the winners were "outsiders" and the "favourites" have yet to pass the winning post.
What is glaringly obvious this year is that the Miss World organisation and the bookies are not in agreement as to which contestants will emerge in the top spots on 30 October. At least 5 of the uber-favourites have not even been included in the Top 40 of the Beach Beauty competition, and at least 15 contestants that they feel have absolutely no chance, have been included in that select group.
In any event, it's still early days with 12 days to go before the Grand Final, but if the bookies had their way, the following contestants would be called into the Top 15:
01: Miss Brazil
02: Miss Slovakia
03: Miss Colombia
04: Miss India
05: Miss Botswana
06: Miss Russia
07: Miss Ireland
08: Miss South Africa
09: Miss Denmark
10: Miss Eygpt
11: Miss Philippines
12: Miss Ukraine
13: Miss Norway
14: Miss Czech Republic
15: Miss Thailand
These rankings are based on the composite odds offered by four of the leading betting houses. The bottom five places will be filled by the winners of the fast-track events should they not already be on the list in a higher position.