You may think that the swimsuit contest is harmless enough, or you may be one of the many who believe the contest profits from the exploitation of women. The fact is that they are a successful way of promoting events. The view put forward by the organizers is that the swimsuit contest offers a perfect opportunity for a person's physical fitness, poise and posture to be judged.

The swimsuit contest is very much the American way of life; in fact many would argue that it is as wholesome as home made apple pie. It often forms part of a large beauty pageant where the judges will allocate set marks for this part of the contest. More than not though, the swimsuit contest will be a stand-alone contest where girls are judged only in their swimsuits and only on their physical appearance.

The critics of the swimsuit contest have always held the view that these events degrade and objectify women. Not only this, they believe that such contests send out the wrong message to all young girls. This is that beauty is by far the single most important asset any female can have.

Many concerned people voice the opinion that the swimsuit contest just fuels the problems faced by many young girls in our society. Low self esteem is regarded as one of the issues responsible for many of the eating and emotional disorders plaguing our younger generation. Perfect bodies are the exception rather than the rule, and should not be used as a marker to judge self worth.

The swimsuit contest is still a very controversial issue in such pageants as Miss Universe and Miss America. Even though it has lost its prominence as far as judging goes, it is still regarded as an essential component of both contests. One has to wonder if this has not happened because of pressure from certain sections of the public. For example, evening wear is now awarded more marks than the swimsuit contest in the Miss America pageant.

Because the relevancy of swimsuit contests in major pageants has always been such an issue, a phone poll was conducted which should have been enough to silence the critics once and for all. An enormous 87% of people voted in favour of retaining the swimsuit contests.

The swimsuit contest has been responsible for launching many careers in the fashion industry. Swimsuit models are now regarded as professional career women and paid accordingly. The contests have proven to be an ideal launching pad for many hopeful models.

It was nearly a century ago that the first swimsuit contest was held. Back then it was called a bathing beauty contest and it was totally shunned by the middle class, who mistakenly believed that all girls were of low morals. It wasn't until World War II that the swimsuit contest gained a little more respectability when girls were enlisted for the war effort in entertaining the troops and selling American war bonds.