Teresita Ssen Winwyn Marquez winning the Reina Hispanoamericana 2017 title and Karen Ibasco’s as Miss Earth 2017 topped the beauty pageant news this year. Marquez and Ibasco’s twin kill on Nov. 4 and 5 saved the Philippines from getting shut out in international beauty competitions after losses in Miss Universe, Miss World and Miss International pageants.
Marquez, the 25-year-old Kapuso star, daughter of Alma Moreno and Joey Marquez and niece of former Miss International Melanie Marquez, made history by being the first Filipina and Asian to compete and win in the Latin-American pageant held in Sta. Cruz, Bolivia.
Ibasco, a 26-year-old licensed physicist and UST instructor, bested 83 candidates to snag the Philippines’ fourth Miss Earth title.
Mutya ng Pilipinas Jannie Loudette Alipo-on also put the country in the winning column when she was proclaimed Miss Tourism International 2017 in Petaling Jaya, Malaysia, becoming the fourth Filipina to win the title.
As they say, you can’t win them all. Some Filipino beauty pageant candidates finished below expectations. Miss Universe 2017 Philippine bet Rachel Peters failed be among the top 10 candidates where Miss Universe 2015 Pia Wurtzbach was one of the judges.
Laura Lehmann also failed to move beyond the Top 40 candidates in Miss World in Sanya, China.
Maria Angelica de Leon, the 24-year-old daughter of Christopher de Leon and Sandy Andolong, was a big failure at the Miss International pageant, and was later bashed by fellow Filipinos for her unsolicited remarks about the Duterte presidency.
Other Bb. Pilipinas titleholders did pretty okay. Nelda Ibe, a 24-year-old cadet pilot finished first runner-up at the Miss Globe 2017 beauty in Tirana, Albania.
Elizabeth Clenci, a 26-year-old Fil-Romanian musician, was named second runner-up in Miss Grand International 2017 in Phu Quoc, Vietnam.
Chanel Olive Thomas finished among the Top 10 at the Miss Supranational 2017 pageant held in Krynica Zdroj in Poland. The 26-year-old Fil-Australian model took home the Miss Friendship special award.
Other Mutya ng Pilipinas beauties finished as runners up: Hannah Khayle Ildefonso Iglesia was 2nd runner-up at the 2017 Asian International Super Model search; and Mary Eve Adeline Escoto, a 23-year-old physical therapist from Guimaras, was crowned Miss Asia Global 2017 in Kerala, India.
Filipino German Maureen Wroblewitz won Asia’s Next Top Model season 5 reality show. The 19-year-old, 5-foot-6 Wroblewitz became the first Filipina to win the popular modeling search.
