The winner of this year's Miss World – Russia’s Ksenia Sukhinova – has arrived in Moscow. Crowds gathered at the capital's Domodedovo airport to welcome back the Siberian beauty.

The 21-year-old student won the crown last week at the beauty-contest extravaganza in Johannesburg.

Having flown from the sunny African savannah into the cold hands of the motherland, the newly crowned Miss World 2008 received a warm welcome.

“I dedicate my victory to my grandmother and to Russia. I want to thank everybody who supported me. My victory is a New Year present to all Russians,” the beauty said, glowing with happiness.

Born in 1987 in Nizhnevartovsk, Ksenia later moved to the Siberian city of Tyumen, a centre of Russia's oil and gas industry located 2,000 kilometres from Moscow. Now she is a student of cybernetic systems at Tyumen’s Oil and Gas University.

“I desperately want to see my parents, friends and relatives. And I’m looking forward to seeing the snow in my homeland – Siberia,” the Miss World said.

The coming year will be very busy for Ksenia. She has to travel on charity missions around the globe, take part in various events and TV shows, and she has also signed several contracts. Kseniya's relatives worry that these activities will not allow her to graduate from university. She may take a year off, but they believe that she has to receive a diploma anyway.

Answering a question on her private life, Sukhinova confessed that her heart was “still free.”

Before being crowned Miss World, Ksenia had also won the titles of Miss Tyumen, Miss Image and Miss Russia 2007.

The Siberian beauty took over her current title from Zhang Zilin of China, last year's winner.

The only previous Russian winner of the international beauty festival was Yulia Kurochkina in 1992. Oksana Fyodorova was crowned Miss Universe in 2002.

Photographer noticed Ksenia in subway – Miss World’s mother

It was a thorny path to success for Ksenia.

As her mother told Russia’s Trud newspaper, Ksenia was spotted in Moscow by only through luck.

“It was indeed a pure chance. Ksenia was going down into one of Moscow’s metro stations when she was noticed by a famous Russia photographer,” Natalia Sukhinova said.

“The man approached her and proposed taking part in casting for the Miss Russia contest. In the end, Ksenia was crowned Miss Russia 2007,” Natalia recalled.