The Philippines is touted as a pageant crazy nation: many young girls grow up dreaming of becoming a beauty queen. A testament to these Filipino ladies' determination to reach their goals is some of this year’s Miss World Philippines candidates, who are pageant veterans. They have either joined a major regional, national, or even an international beauty pageant.
But a major crown, like the Miss World Philippines (MWP) crown, eludes them. Some have been so close to victory that they could almost feel the weight of the crown resting on their heads.
These ladies are unfazed by their previous pageant ‘losses’ – they are actually motivated to try even harder. In some cases, they're determined not to try too hard and just enjoy the competition, so that their real and authentic selves would shine instead of that of a rehearsed pageant contestant.
Many pageant aficionados have been waiting for their return, and their supporters might just end up seeing victories this time around. Most of these candidates already have a solid group of supporters, which are expected to grow even more during MWP 2017.
These young women were asked why they joined Miss World Philippines and how this experience will be different from their previous ones.
Laura Lehmann
“As you know, I was previously in another national
pageant, and I was first runner-up there. I think it was expected of me
to join that pageant again and a lot of people were pushing for that,"
she said.
"At the end of the day, I think you really have to
join the pageant that’s in your heart. And you really have to do what
you’re passionate about and what you want. For me, that was the Miss
World Organization. I like what they do, I like their advocacies,
especially the 'beauty with a purpose.' This was in my heart and that’s
exactly why I joined Miss World Philippines."
Gabriela Ortega
Gabriela Patricia Ortega was a Top 15 semifinalist in
Bb Pilipinas 2017. She was born in Madrid and is a licensed architect.
Although her age doesn’t qualify her for the Miss World Philippines
title, she is still eligible for 3 other crowns such as Reina
Hispanoamericana.
Many Latin American pageant fans question the
upcoming participation of the Philippines in this pageant's 2017 edition
in Bolivia. Maybe the best way to earn the country a rightful place in
the pageant is to send a Spanish-speaking candidate who was born and
raised in Spain.
“I joined Miss World because they extended the age
limit to 26 years old because they now have another 3 crowns. I want it
so bad that sayang naman (what a waste), that I was in the Top
15 in my previous pageant, and I was so close. And at the same time, I
didn’t reach that goal to represent the Philippines internationally. I
believe that experience is something you cannot compare with anything
else. And I want to promote the country and say that I am a Filipina
worldwide. So when I knew I had another chance, I joined," she said.
Wyn Marquez
Jona Sweett was crowned Miss Philippines Earth Eco-Tourism
2015. She is hoping to win one of the 4 crowns at stake in Miss World
Philippines 2017.
"I decided to join MWP 2017 because I believe this
pageant really focuses on unity and giving back something to the
community. Two years ago, when I won a national title, I had an idea to
organize a birthday party for a cause in my province for my 20th
birthday. But [I'm] sad to say it didn't push through because of the
lack of budget that I gathered from soliciting. My plan was I would buy
school supplies for the less fortunate students in my province," she
said."If I win the Miss World Philippines title, I would use my crown as power to gather and influence more people to join me in my future charity events and make them realize that it is important to share your blessings by helping the less fortunate ones."
Joanna Marie Rabe
“For me, it is a dream come true that I am an
official candidate of MWP. One more thing, I want to change nothing into
something, because the advocacy of MWP is 'beauty with a purpose,'
which I have. And I wanted to reach out to more people if I win this
competition. That’s why I joined this competition," she said.
Zara Carbonell
Zara Carbonell competed in Miss Philippines Earth 2011.
“This one is a decision I really thought through, it
took me about a year to decide on Miss World Philippines specifically. I
was already in the middle of preparations for another competition. Then
a month before the competition, I had withdrawn from the training to
make sure that I would be ready for Miss World Philippines," she said.
"I believe that if you join something, you should
join it at 100% and give 100% of yourself. The key to that is turning
back to your core, your backbone, to the why of everything. I feel that
there is always a bigger picture. As a young girl, I dreamed of being a
beauty queen. I want to be there for little girls who want to be the
same. Hopefully, I can build bridges and these little girls can look to
that and get there sooner.”
Cynthia Thomalla
Cynthia was Reyna ng Aliwan 2016 (Sinulog Queen).
“I joined Miss World because their mission and vision
is to help others. And that is what I want to do in life. I want to
know my purpose in life too. To be able to inspire and to reach our to
those people who need help," she said.
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