March 25: The eight judges for Miss USA 2005 have been announced. They are Michael Phelps, Sugar Ray Leonard, Molly Sims, Raj Bhakta, Brody Hutzler, Pamela Dennis, Nicola Breytenbach and Frederic Fekkai.

The Miss USA 2005 event will be held in on April 11, 2005 at Baltimore. This time, the public has been invited to weigh in on the contest's preliminary round through a virtual judging part.

From April 1 to 6, fashion fans can go to www.coverGirl.com to see photographs and interviews of the 51 Miss USA 2005 delegates and vote for their favorites. This popular vote counts for less than 10 percent of the preliminary vote.

A group of beauty industry experts will select the top 15 entrants before the competition. On pageant night, to air live on NBC, the judges will assess those 15 finalists in three categories: swimsuit, evening gown and interview.

The winner will represent the US in the Miss Universe pageant, to be held this year in Bangkok, Thailand on May 30, 2005.

BY A CORRESPONDENT