# Nuestra Belleza México 1996

Nuestra Belleza México 1996, the 3rd Nuestra Belleza México pageant, was held at the Centro de Convenciones of Cancún, Quintana Roo, Mexico on September 22, 1996. Thirty-two contestants of the Mexican Republic competed for the national title, which was won by Rebeca Tamez from Tamaulipas, who later competed at Miss Universe 1997 in the US. Tamez was crowned by outgoing Nuestra Belleza México titleholder Vanessa Guzmán and Miss Universe 1996 Alicia Machado from Venezuela. She was the first Tamaulipeca and winner of foreign descent (her mother is an American) to win this title.
The Nuestra Belleza Mundo México title was won by Yessica Salazar from Jalisco, who later competed at Miss World 1996 in India where she was a Semi-finalist in the Top 10. Salazar was crowned by outgoing Nuestra Belleza Mundo México titleholder Alejandra Quintero. She is the first and only Jalisciense to win this title.
For the first time, two events were held separately to select the two winners for the titles Nuestra Belleza México and Nuestra Belleza Mundo México.

## Results
### Nuestra Belleza México

| Final Results | Contestant |
| Nuestra Belleza México 1996 | Tamaulipas – Rebeca Tamez |
| Suplente/1st Runner-up | Veracruz – Ileana Fomperosa |
| 2nd Runner-up | Chihuahua – Banelly Carrasco |
| 3rd Runner-up | Distrito Federal – Ivette Benavides |
| 4th Runner-up | Querétaro – Iveth García |
| 5th Runner-up | Sinaloa – Celia Chávez |
| Top 16 | Chiapas – Melina Cautiño Durango – Brenda Alcantar Jalisco – Yessica Salazar Nayarit – Tania Vázquez Nuevo León – Blanca Martínez Oaxaca – Karina Román Quintana Roo – Ana Ivette Zelaya Sonora – Mirna Miranda Yucatán – Lyndia Quiroz Zacatecas – Sonia García |

### Nuestra Belleza Mundo México

One week before the Final Competition was held, the Preliminary Competition featured a live show entitled "Nuestra Belleza México: Rumbo a Miss Mundo" in they announced that the winner of the Nuestra Belleza Mundo México title was Yessica Salazar from Jalisco, who would go on to represent Mexico at Miss World 1996 and finish as a semi-finalist in the Top 10. All contestants competed in swimsuit and evening gown categories during the contest.
The Nuestra Belleza Mundo México pageant was held at the Xcaret Park in Cancún, Quintana Roo, Mexico and was hosted by Marco Antonio Regil. It was the debut of the "Nuestra Belleza Mundo México" contest in its capacity as an official separate pageant to choose Mexico's representative to Miss World. Although the winner of this event also competed in the Final Competition, she finished only as a semi-finalist.
The musical part was enlivened by the following groups: Manuel Mijares, José Luis Rodríguez "El Puma and Paul Anka.
| Final Results | Contestant |
| Nuestra Belleza Mundo México 1996 | Jalisco – Yessica Salazar |
| Suplente/1st Runner-up | Veracruz – Ileana Fomperosa |
| 2nd Runner-up | Distrito Federal – Ivette Benavides |
| 3rd Runner-up | Chihuahua – Banelly Carrasco |
| 4th Runner-up | Querétaro – Iveth García |

## Contestants

| State | Contestant | Age |
| Aguascalientes | María del Pilar Magallanes Peréz | 18 |
| Baja California | Karla Baeza Noriega | 18 |
| ' Baja California Sur | Guadalupe Castillo Celaya | 18 |
| Campeche | Liliana Rendis Buenfil | 23 |
| Coahuila | Martha Elena Padilla Galarza | 21 |
| Colima | Alma Alicia De la Torre Robledo | 20 |
| Chiapas | Melina María Doutiño Glaúner | 18 |
| Chihuahua | Banelly Carrasco Loya | 19 |
| Distrito Federal | Ivette Benavides Rojas | 23 |
| Durango | Brenda Elena Alcantar Díaz | 22 |
| Estado de México | Maricela del Carmén Fernández Tovar | 18 |
| Guanajuato | Liliana De Anda Gómez | 21 |
| Guerrero | Nancy Karina Bejar Bernal | 21 |
| Hidalgo | Isela Erendira Ruíz Castañeda | 19 |
| Jalisco | Yessica Salazar González | 21 |
| Michoacán | Verónica Martínez Pérez | 21 |
| Morelos | Ana Paula Castañares De los Cobos | 18 |
| Nayarit | Tania Elizabeth Vázquez Pérez | 19 |
| Nuevo León | Blanca Elena Martínez De la Fuente | 19 |
| Oaxaca | Karin Román Peillet | 18 |
| Puebla | María del Pilar Ariadna Romo Durand | 22 |
| Querétaro | Hortensia Iveth García Frias | 19 |
| Quintana Roo | Ana Ivette Zelaya Espinoza | 20 |
| San Luis Potosí | Gloria De la Garza Hernández | 19 |
| Sinaloa | Celia Gloria Chávez Carrasco | 23 |
| Sonora | Mirna Irene Miranda Torres | 21 |
| Tabasco | Alejandra Rodríguez Bustamantes | 19 |
| Tamaulipas | Rebeca Lyn Tamez Jones | 20 |
| Tlaxcala | María Luisa Orozco Arechiga | 18 |
| Veracruz | Ileana Fomperosa Chavarín | 21 |
| Yucatán | Lyndia Quiroz Zavala | 19 |
| Zacatecas | Sonia García Ramírez | 21 |

## Judges
### Preliminary competition

* Miriam Sommers – Fashion and Designer Coordinator
* Víctor Bucardo – Ponds Brand Director
* Glenda Reyna – Glenda Models Director
* César Évora – Actor
* Sarah Bustani – Fashion Designer
* Óscar Madrazo – Contempo Models Director
* Leticia Calderón – Actress