Upcoming tilts choose their Darling of the Press By JAY PATAO

Upcoming tilts choose their Darling of the Press

By JAY PATAO

Photos by Edmund Chua & Lito Caleon

VARIOUS national beauty pageants will be staging their preliminary and final events in the next two months, all exerting their best efforts to grab the attention and get the needed mileage from members of media as they select their ambassadors of beauty and foray their causes in the name of tourism, culture, charity, environmental awareness, and more.

Three of them, in fact, presented their contestants to the press who were asked to select their favorite for “Darling of the Press.”

Last Friday, the 5th Miss Tourism Philippines Pageant presented 41 contestants representing cities, municipalities and provinces throughout the country who will vie for the coveted title and the right to represent the Philippines at the Miss Tourism World finals later this year. Chosen as Darling of the Press was Pampanga’s Patricia Kay Arabaca, a charming newbie in national pageants.

According to the pageant’s founder Gareth Blanco, several tourism-related activities like the Santacruzan at Glorietta on May 10 will be held leading to the grand coronation night on May 28 at the Newport Performing Arts Theater of Resorts World Manila.

At the newly formed Queens of Our Beautiful Planet Philippines (QBPP) press presentation at Chateau de Baie on Roxas Blvd., Parañaque City last Monday, 21 beauteous ladies vying in 3 group categories (Teen, Miss and Mrs./Ms.) wowed members of media as they paraded in deep purple swimwear and vowed a united stand to advance their personal platforms to eventually campaign for a beautiful planet.

Karen Sabarre, an Australian promoter who also organizes pageants Down Under, is upbeat about their “baby” and the challenge to produce the first Pinay delegates to the first Queens of Our Beautiful Planet world finale to be held in Yancheng, China in September. Tweena Tungcul Pagulayan, a 22-year-old teacher from Tuguegarao, Cagayan was voted as Darling of the Press at the event.

Noticeably, 10 of the 21 contestants come from Mindanao, providing a welcome opportunity and a good balance for beauty aspirants from the south to compete fairly with their northern counterparts.

The finals of QBPP will be held at Tanghalang Pasigueño tonight.

And finally, last Tuesday at the new Expo Hall of Fisher Mall in Quezon City, the press launch of the 3rd Miss Global Philippines Pageant was held with 23 beautiful ladies, including a single mom, vying for the coveted title and the honor to represent the country at the Miss Global international finals which will be hosted by the Philippines for the second straight year.

Janelle Olafson, the 26-year-old Fil-Am beauty who was ousted from the last Bb. Pilipinas pageant because of a sexy photo in a men’s magazine, loomed as the early favorite after being voted as Darling of the Press along with Clarize Angelica Barrameda and Danica Ebreda.

No one is more excited than Miss Global Philippines CEO Pauline Sofia Laping who promised that this year’s hopefuls will do their best to impress the public with their beauty, poise, wit and charm. The national finals will be held at Resorts World Manila’s Newport Performing Arts
Theater on June 4.