Shirley Yeung of Hong Kong, Loredana Zammit of Malta, and Gabriela Riquelme of Paraguay withdrew after their respective organizations lost their licenses.

Argentina, Barbados, Botswana, New Zealand, and Taiwan withdrew after their respective organizations failed to hold a national competition or appoint a delegate.

[10][11] According to then-president of the Miss Universe Organization Paula Shugart, Fedorova was not able to fulfill her duties as she needed to spend a lot of time in Russia.

[12] Fedorova was expected to travel extensively and make personal appearances as part of her duties, but she declined to participate in some of those assignments, including the 2002 Miss Teen USA pageant.

[11] In an interview with Russian TV Channel 2, Fedorova said she was surprised when the Miss Universe Organization described her resignation as an ouster, and that the decision to return the crown was up to her.

Fedorova is a police lieutenant in Russia, and at the time she was Miss Universe, she was finishing her dissertation at the Academy of Internal Affairs which she defended in October of the same year.