The other contenders

Sister Nirmala was one of four names mentioned as Mother Teresa's likely successor: The others

Sister Frederick: The first of the four councillor generals, she secured the maximum number of first-preference votes in the last election seven years ago. A disciplinarian, the octogenarian Maltese nun was the favourite for the office, having run the Missionaries of Charity in recent years.

Sister Joseph Michael: The Mother's secretary for many years, she is in charge of training the young nuns.

Sister Priscilla: The mission's spokeswoman is an Anglo-Indian who worked as a missionary in New York for 16 years. She also determines the Mother's itinerary: whom the Nobel Laureate should or should not meet.