FOX Sports Wisconsin Girl Bishara finishes in top 10 at Miss USA
MILWAUKEE -- For FOX Sports Wisconsin Girl Bishara, representing the state of Wisconsin in the Miss USA pageant was years in the making.
Countless years of preparation led to the moment when Bishara, one of the three FOX Sports Wisconsin Girls, was crowned Miss Wisconsin last September. That earned Bishara the right to represent Wisconsin in the Miss USA pageant this past weekend in Baton Rouge, La., where she placed in the top 10.
"I competed for three years before I won (Miss Wisconsin)," Bishara told FOXSportsWisconsin.com. "To finally be able to be there was just incredible. It was just so surreal. We got to do so many amazing things.
"It was just so rewarding because it took me three times to win. It was a place I wanted to be for a long time. To finally be there was a dream come true."
Bishara became the first Miss Wisconsin to place in the top 10 at the Miss USA pageant since Kathryn Joy Wituschek was a semifinalist in 1979.
"I'm just so proud to wear the banner of Wisconsin," Bishara said. "People don't expect much from Wisconsin at that level of competition. We're not known to be a 'sash-state.' I was so proud to be able to put us back on the map as far as that goes."
Because the television broadcast was extended to three hours this year, Bishara and her fellow competitors spent two weeks in Louisiana before the show aired.
The Wauwatosa East High School graduate survived the cut down from 51 to 20 and was still left standing when the field was reduced to the top 10. After another part of the competition, the judges did not choose Bishara as part of the top 5, while the viewing audience didn't pick her as their choice for the finals.
"That group of girls, the class of 2014 was a really competitive group as far as skill level," Bishara said. "These girls were accomplished, driven and beautiful inside and out. To be able to stand in the top 10 on national television is mind blowing."
One of the three original FOX Sports Wisconsin girls, Bishara was well known in the state before competing for Miss USA. She feels her work with FOX Sports Wisconsin helped her accomplish her pageant goals.
"I couldn't have done it without FOX Sports," Bishara said. "I think everything happens for a reason. I have been competing for three years, and I didn't win until I started working for FOX Sports Wisconsin. I think not only the support from FOX Sports, but also the fans.
"Everything I have done with FOX Sports has helped me to grow as a woman. All the experiences that I have had, everything I have done to this point has helped me to come out of my shell and develop who I am."
While she'll still be visable in the community as a FOX Sports Wisconsin girl, Bishara's pageant career is over.
"This was it," Bishara said. "This was the grand finale for me. The goal was to always to go to Miss USA. Now that I have done that, this was like going to the Super Bowl for me."
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