Miss Korea 2007 Lee Ji-sun poses for photos at a press conference to announce her participation in Miss Universe 2008 at the Lotte Hotel in Sogong-dong, Seoul on Tuesday. /Yonhap

"A beauty in Korea is generally considered someone who looks pretty, gentle and cute," Lee said. "But the Miss Universe pageant tends to prefer dignified, self-assertive beauties with a mature rather than girlish image." Knowing that, Lee has begun a strict, systematic training regimen under the tutelage of renowned French beauty pageant trainer Ines Ligrin, who helped Japan's Riyo Mori capture the Miss Universe 2007 title.

Ligrin said she gladly agreed to train Lee because she was eager to make another Asian woman Miss Universe, given the heightened status of the world beauty contest in Asia and the fact that Miss Korea 2006 Lee Honey was third runner up in last year's Miss Universe.

Stressing that Miss Universe puts inner beauty above all else, the French trainer talked about how she worked with Lee for the contest. When she first saw Lee, Ligrin thought she was too skinny, so she asked her to gain 5 kg. She also had Lee ride a bicycle to build her muscles -- to the point where Lee was working so hard that people around them said it seemed like they were training for the Olympics.

Miss Korea 2007 Lee Ji-sun (left) and her trainer Ines Ligrin speak to reporters at a press conference to announce Lee's participation in Miss Universe 2008 at the Lotte Hotel in Sogong-dong, Seoul on Tuesday. /Yonhap

Lee has devoted herself to preparing for the world pageant since last year, even taking a leave of absence from Parsons the New School for Design.

Hosted by the Miss Universe Organization, which is co-owned by America's NBC Universal and real estate tycoon Donald Trump, this year's Miss Universe pageant will be held in the Vietnamese city of Nha Trang from June 19 through July 14.

(englishnews@chosun.com )