Ms Orla Tobin from Dublin has been crowned the 2003 Rose of Tralee. Orla works for Bank of Ireland in Dublin, and her mother is from Listowel and her father from Abbeyfeale.
Orla was a member of RTE youth choir Cor Na nOg and sang in the RTE proms. She has been in a finalist for the Face of L'Oreal 2001 competition and was picked last year to star as an extra in the Hollywood film Veronica Guerin.
The 22-year-old currently works for the Bank of Ireland Treasury and International where she is studying for a degree in Business Studies.
The attention of 26 comely maidens, their escorts and up to a million television viewers will be directed at Tralee this evening to see who will claim the coveted 2003 Rose of Tralee title.
Tralee stands to make millions of Euro from the five-day long festival which kicked off last Friday.
At least 200,000 visitors were expected in the town for the festivities which comprise concerts of both traditional and international music, parades and fireworks displays.
The Roses are traditionally drawn from any number of countries across the world and this year there are eight Irish Roses and 18 international Roses from countries including Luxembourg, United States, Australia, New Zealand, Canada and Dubai. This year also sees the appearance of the first England Rose.