Miss Panama Diana Broce is Miss Universe 2009 Best in National Costume

The results for the Miss Universe 2009 National Costume Competition held last Monday have been revealed just recently with Miss Panama Diana Patricia Broce winning Best in National Costume.

First Runner Up was Miss Nicaragua Indiana Sánchez while Second Runner Up was Miss Thailand Chutima Durongdej.

It's the third time that a representative from Panama won as Best in National Costume.

Previous winners from Panama were Gilda Garcia Lopez in 1986 and Jessica Rodriguez Clark in 2004, but were unplaced in the finals.

The winner of the Best in National Costume actually does not have a guaranteed placement in the semis.

Only 33% of the Best National Costume recipients in Miss University history managed to earn a spot in the finals.

However, three of them went on to win the Miss Universe title: Porntip Nakhirunkanok from Thailand (1988), Wendy Fitzwilliam from Trinidad and Tobago (1998) and Amelia Vega from Dominican Republic (2003).

Two more special awards will be handed out during the Miss Universe 2009 finals: Miss Photogenic and Miss Congeniality.