Profile of Alicia Machado on Famous Like Me

Yoseph Alicia Machado Fajardo, or Alicia Machado (b. December 1976) was the fourth woman from Venezuela to win the Miss Universe crown. She won the Miss Venezuela 1995 pageant representing Yaracuy.

Machado was born in Maracay in the state of Aragua. Despite not being a major favorite for Miss Venezuela, Machado defied all prognostications and went all the way to win the Miss Universe 1996 pageant in Las Vegas. The runner-up, Jacqueline Aguilera, also won the Miss World 1995 crown, marking the second time that Venezuela had held the two world titles simultaneously. Machado's reign came as Donald Trump took ownership of the Miss Universe pageant, and was marred by a scandal surrounding her weight gain following her win.

One of the most controversial beauty queens in history, she has followed a short television career with a new foray into music. In 2004 she launched the Latin American segment of her new album by performing onstage at the Miss Venezuela pageant, appearing as an honored guest along with the country's first Miss Universe, Maritza Sayalero.

Among the controversies that have followed her career is a supposed rivalry with fellow former Miss Universe Amelia Vega, who is also breaking into the Latin American music industry. Another was the breakup of her engagement to major-league baseball star Bobby Abreu in May 2005. Abreu, an idol in the Latin world and an icon in Venezuela, split with Machado after she was filmed being intimate with another man on La Granja ("the farm"), a Spanish program similar to Big Brother. They had been planning to marry in December.

In 2004–2005, she can be viewed almost twenty-four hours a day on several cable-television channels in Latin America in a commercial for a dieting product.

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