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By JOHN CURRAN Associated Press Writer September 15, 2004, 5:34 PM EDT ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. -- The first time Jennifer Dupont saw the bikini she'd be wearing at Miss America, she just about blushed. That little thing? 'It was so little, when I pulled it out of the bag, my eyes were as big as my head,' said Dupont, who is Miss Louisiana. 'I said 'This is what I'm wearing in Miss America?' I was so self-conscious, I didn't even want to model it in front of my father and my interview coach.' By Miss America standards, the two-piece Speedo swimsuits are itsy, bitsy, teeny-weeny and downright ... risque. 'They're absolutely horrible,' said Joanne Girolami, of Tacoma, Wash., a Miss Washington pageant official. Provided by Speedo under a two-year sponsorship deal with the Miss America Organization, the Speedo Sport line suits _ which will hit stores later this year, starting at $84 _ come in one-piece and two-piece models. All but 10 of the 52 women contestants have chosen the two-piece model, which shows more skin than Miss America's ever seen. Miss Florida Jenna Edwards, who describes herself as 'a little top-heavy,' chose the two-piece but had to get a replacement for the top because it didn't fit. Once she did, she impressed the judges enough to win a preliminary competition in swimsuit. Others balked at the two-piece, either out of modesty or fear that their flaws would be more visible. 'I wouldn't be comfortable baring that much,' said Miss New Jersey Erica Scanlon. 'I wouldn't feel comfortable on stage in it, and I wouldn't want my daughter to wear it, either.' Despite its origins as a bathing beauty review, the Miss America pageant has never been at the forefront of fashion _ in swimsuits or anything else. For years, contestants wore unflattering one-piece 'supersuits' that may have left too much to the imagination. It wasn't until 1997 that two-piece suits were allowed. But the Speedo models go too far, some say. 'I
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