Miss World Philippines 2014 held its Gala Charity Night at the Grand Ballroom of Solaire Resort & Casino. Ms. Cory Quirino welcomed all invited guests, media representatives and valued sponsors. After the expertly-prepared sit-down dinner, the twenty-six (26) Official Candidates were formally presented in evening gowns provided by Vatican Fashion Museum.
Entertainment was provided by R&B Artist Kris Lawrence and Ysabella Gonzalez (Kuh Ledesma’s singer-daughter). Hosting duties were fulfilled by TV Personality RJ Ledesma.
Judging was also made for the Best in Fashion Runway. The winner will be announced this coming Sunday.
It was a successful event by all counts. By now, I am getting a pretty good idea of who among the 26 will figure out well in the October 12 finals night at the SM MOA Arena. ;-)
Miss World Philippines 2013 and Miss World 2013 Megan Young (Photo credit: Bruce Casanova)
Image may be NSFW. Clik here to view. In just a couple of days from now, Miss World Philippines 2014 will be chosen at SM Mall of Asia Arena – the place where Miss World Philippines and Miss World 2013 Megan Young will crown her precious successor.
As is customary with this blog, I am now posting my final assessment and predictions on who will likely become our Miss World 2014 representative in London come December.
Down to a Dozen:
Let me start with my Top 12 picks in the photo grids below. They are presented according to their respective numbers.
I wouldn’t call slicing the twenty-six (26) Official Candidates right about in the middle as the easiest. Neither was it the most difficult as well. In fact, only the 11th and 12th spots are fair game going into the homestretch. In my opinion, that is.
At least half of the dozen are shoo-ins – #1 Lorraine Kendrickson, #3 Alexa Kirby, #5 Gazini Ganados, #7 Rachel Peters, #12 Christine Balaguer and #19 Valerie Weigmann – and should make the first cut without much to worry. Even #14 Nicole Donesa can easily join the group being the unofficial entry of the airing network, GMA-7.
Additionally, the next four – #20 Nelda Ibe, #6 Kristine Estoque, #18 Ruffa Nava, and #16 Ina Dominica Guerrero – have performed well enough to secure semifinal placements. So that leaves me with the final slot going to #15 Ma. Theresa Regli who has shown much promise, aside from – according to buzz – being the girl fielded by MWP2012 Queenie Rehman. Only a fast-track-winning candidate or two outside the ones mentioned above could act as spoiler/s, and will only be known on Sunday night.
Lorraine, Gazini, Rachel and Valerie are the Constant Four in Miss World Philippines 2014 (Photo credit: Vatican Fashion Museum)
This is where the going could get tougher. Why? Because there are already four (4) candidates who are almost assured of making it to the winning circle – #1 Lorraine Kendrickson, #5 Gazini Ganados, #7 Rachel Peters and #19 Valerie Weigmann. And there are at least another four (4) remaining contenders who have clear shots of joining them.
#3 Alexa Kirby is a strong possibility. And her ace is not only the fact that she is Miss Philippines Quest USA East Coast (and the only rep from a Fil Community abroad). She is youthful, lively and full of fresh ideas.
#12 Christine Balaguer is likely to make it not just because she is the deaf entrant who could bring in more interest to the final Q&A. She really improved a lot since the Press Presentation.
#14 Nicole Donesa is not just a pretty face being backed up by her home network. I got the chance to speak with her at reasonable length last Tuesday night and she has the charm & smarts to give the front-runners a good run for the money.
And #20 Nelda Ibe is the tallest in the batch. But that is not the only plus she proudly flaunts. There is a regal and crown-worthy aura – albeit a bit subdued at times – in the way she moves and presents herself. She is a dark horse capable of making that one long gallop to the top.
One of the four ladies above – Alexa, Christine, Nicole and Nelda – could grab the fifth and final ticket to the Top 5 (Photo credit: Vatican Fashion Museum)
But for the more definitive purpose of this post, I am calling #12 Christine Balaguer as the last Top 5 Finalist.
Hence, I have now a complete cast.
Ranking the Quintet:
My focus is on the complete package. Ideally, she should be the girl who encapsulates the “Beauty in Giving” vision of Miss World Philippines. The Filipina who is 100% ready to step up to the plate if the Miss World 2014 competition will take place next week. The stunner who can hold a candle to her predecessor who went on to win the country’s first Miss World crown in Bali last year. So instead of getting riled up by whoever is the sexiest or smoldering hot, I would go for the most deserving candidate who has a stunning face, competitive body proportions, a slice of talent, a big heart and whole lot of purpose.
In the end, I would go for a clash between #1 Lorraine Kendrickson and #19 Valerie Weigmann. Both ladies can tick all the required boxes and still add interesting premiums in the process of fulfilling the demands of the title.
Pitting them off in one final head-to-head, my bet is Valerie Weigmann. She is my choice for Miss World Philippines 2014.
Down to the two ladies above, I will go for Valerie Weigmann to represent the Philippines in Miss World 2014. Lorraine Kendrickson is more than worthy of a 1st Princess placement (Photo credit: Jory Rivera/OPMB Worldwide)
Valerie Weigmann will be going to London to represent the country in Miss World 2014.
After winning a record-number of twelve (12) Special Awards, she never faltered in the Q&A and zoomed all the way to the top. The Fil-German lass will now be following the trail of her predecessor Megan Young. Hopefully, a back-to-back Miss World victory is in the horizon with her selection.
Miss World Philippines 2014 Valerie Weigmann (middle) and her Princesses (l-r) Nicole Donesa, Nelda Ibe, Lorraine Kendrickson and Rachel Peters
Up to now, some people are questioning why last night’s competition went straight to announcing the Top 5 finalists shortly after the Top 13 semifinalists were named. I was just as taken aback. I was re-entering the venue after going to the rest room so I had to make a mad scramble for my tablet to make real-time updates after seeing hosts Mikael Daez and Janine Gutierrez already opening the envelope contraining the names of the quintet who made the final cut.
My crude selfie with the winners in the background
I can only surmise that the gaps in pageant proceedings were eating too much time and having the Top 13 do individual casual interviews would push the live event to go further beyond midnight. It was already stretching too late. The audience is getting antsy that some of the noisier ones were starting to heckle the hosts. And the ladies themselves were clearly enduring too much pain, standing up on platform heels and maintaining their standard poses with no complaints.
So it would be safe to say that the Top 5 Finalists were determined based on the cumulative scores in swimsuit and evening gowns when they were still a big group. Calling out the Top 13 was just like going through the motion of acknowledging the ones who made the first cut.
Watch now the Top 5 Q&A and Announcement of Miss World Philippines 2014 winners.
courtesy of Beauty Pageant Channel
P.S. Last night was the first time I witnessed big crowds for Miss World Philippines that closely approximated the numbers during Bb. Pilipinas finals. Credit goes to the big venue and free tickets for everyone.
(Left to right): A beaming Cory Quirino, a happy Valerie Weigmann and a satisfied Megan Young. The little girl holding on to Ms. Cory is GMA child actress Chlaui Malayao (Photo credit: OPMB Worldwide)
When Miss World Philippines 2014 Valerie Weigmann departs for London by mid-November, she will arrive with the whole-hearted recommendation of Ms. Cory Quirino to Julia Morley. And why not? The MWP Head knows that she’s got the complete package in the girl who could possibly go for a back-to-back Miss World win.
This early, I can count on Valerie to figure out in the Top Model, Beach Beauty, Multimedia and Beauty with a Purpose fast-track segments of the competition. Talent-wise, she’ll need to polish her magician show to be taken more seriously by the judges. But if she can take a lesson or two from MWP2014 Miss Talent Jean Marie Feliciano who was unanimously praised for her smooth tricks, that would mean a worthwhile skill improvement to her act.
Miss World Philippines 2014 Valerie Weigmann in action during the pageant finals’ swimsuit and everning gown competitions. (Photo credit: Jory Rivera/OPMB Worldwide)
And wardrobe-wise, I am pretty confident that she will be bringing luggages of beautiful creations from some our noted fashion designers like Francis Libiran, Cherry Veric and some of the members of Vatican Fashion Museum like Yako Reyes and Eric delos Santos.
So this early, I’d say that our Miss World 2014 will be fighting #ForThePhilippines with all her might.
courtesy of philstar.com
Let’s keep on supporting Valerie, dear readers! :-D
MWP2014 Valerie Weigmann will be in attendance tonight!
Want to watch some lively musical jamming while giving your share to the BWAP (Beauty With A Purpose) Project of Miss World Philippines 2014 Valerie Weigmann at the same time? Then, the 1st Anniversary Benefit Concert of MusiKaramay will happen tonight at the Music Hall of Metrowalk in Ortigas.
What’s more, you will get the chance to meet, greet and have a photo op with our newly-crowned beauty queen, fresh from her success last Sunday night. Ain’t that sweet?
Tickets are priced at P500.00 each and the proceeds will go to the livelihood and rehabilitation of our indigenous Aeta brothers and sisters in Mayantoc,Tarlac.
Surprise singers/bands will be performing alongside singers Top Suzara and Jay Durias with the advocacy’s originator, Climax. Show starts at 9pm till late. :-)
Megan Young crowning Valerie Weigmann. Will the image happen again come December? (Photo credit: Jory Rivera/OPMB Worldwide)
Image may be NSFW. Clik here to view. The images above and left cannot be called prophetic at this point because they are already anticipated shots due to the mandated transfer of the national crown of Megan Young to her successor Valerie Weigmann.
But taking things into a higher level of wishful thinking should give more reasons to hope that Megan’s other crown – the blue one – will find its way to the head of Valerie. And honestly, it’s not at all impossible.
Back-to-backs are nothing new to the London-based pageant. Before Miss Universe had its first way back in 2008 and 2009 for Venezuela, Miss World has already managed three (3) for Sweden (1951 & 1952), UK (1964 & 1965) and India (1999 & 2000).
So let me repeat my question. Just what are the chances? ;-)
Looking for victories in Miss World, Miss International and Miss Supranational are Valerie, Bianca and Yvethe, respectively
Call it fate, sheer coincidence or plain luck of the results. But Aces & Queens ended up with the major titleholders who will work hard for back-to-back wins abroad. It’s like a blind-folded Jonas Gaffud dipped his hand inside a velvet bag to select three random challenge chips and picked the tougher ones like clustered destiny.
But as the popular saying goes, “when the going gets tough, the tough get going.” And when the successful track record becomes like second skin, the next step is to up the level of difficulty to see how far the envelope can be pushed.
As far as Miss World Philippines 2014 Valerie Weigmann, Bb. Pilipinas International 2014 Mary Anne Bianca Guidotti and Bb. Pilipinas Supranational 2014 Yvethe Marie Santiago are concerned, they will not settle for anything less than the crowns currently on the lovely heads of Megan Young, Bea Rose Santiago and Mutya Datul, respectively. The three missions sound ambitious. But the objective is to set the bar high, and not be distracted from focus. You can bet your bottom dollar that they will give more than their 100% best efforts to go for the big wins.
With our constant cheers and support, nothing is impossible for our Queens. After all, it’s #ForThePhilippines ! :-D
Earlier in the day, newly-crowned Miss World Philippines 2014 Valerie Weigmann departed for Legazpi City in Albay where a scheduled homecoming took place in her mother’s birthplace. Together with Ms. Cory Quirino and handler Caloy Buendia, they had separate courtesy calls with Gov. Joey Salceda and Vice-Gov. Harold Imperial. A motorcade followed which, despite the drizzles, went on as planned. A meet-up was also conducted where members of the Bicol Press showed up to do interviews and be in awe with her beautiful presence.
Our Queen also visited two evacuation centers in Camalig North and Upper Malabog to see for herself the condition of the families staying there.
All in all, it was a day well-spent for Valerie. It may have been a tiring sked, but nothing that would keep her from doing each and every detail in her full itinerary. :-)
Left to right: Ms. Cory Quirino, MWP2014 Valerie Weigmann and Gerry Diaz of A&Q
Tell me. When was the last time you saw Ms. Cory Quirino holding up an umbrella to someone else? Very recently, I must say.
You see, the MWP Director is very protective of her Queen, especially nowadays that Miss World Philippines 2014 is less than a month away from departing for Miss World 2014 in London.
And in the recent Albay Homecoming of Valerie Weigmann, it was drizzling when they landed in Legazpi City. With nobody to immediately protect her from getting wet, Ms. Cory took matters in her own hands, opened a golf umbrella and shielded the crowned beauty herself.
What’s more, she has committed to staying by Valerie’s side – a la Julia Morley – till arrival in UK, by which time Miss World Organization will take over. Perhaps, she will resume the constant trailing after the December 14 finals? ;-)
When was the last time you saw Ms. Cory Quirino holding up an umbrella to someone else? (Photo credit: Melvin Sia for Fabmanilaph)
Remember the photo above – showing Ms. Cory Quirino holding up an umbrella for Miss World Philippines 2014 Valerie Weigmann – which elicited both delight and a few creased foreheads? Well, Albay Governor Joey Salceda was nice enough to upload more photos of their arrival at the airport in Legazpi City. The following images should clearly explain what transpired from the time they stepped out of the plane, down the stairs to the tarmac and walking straight to the spot where they met all the welcoming officials.
Val during her visit to an evacuation center in Albay
When Miss World Philippines 2014 Valerie Weigmann guested on GMA-7’s Startalk last Saturday afternoon, she took the opportunity to thank all her supporters, aside from answering the questions of hosts Joey de Leon and Heart Evangelista. You can definitely see how her previous stint in the noontime variety show Eat Bulaga has helped in her public speaking, especially in the vernacular.
When asked by host Joey de Leon if she is ready to win the country’s 2nd Miss World crown, Val confidently answered.
“Reading-ready na…I will put myself into this. I want to be best that I can be. And I want to show the world that we are deserving it…”
Lorraine (middle) with her loving parents (Photo credit: Vatican Fashion Museum)
Lorraine Kendrickson may have fallen short of the Miss World Philippines 2014 crown during the finals, but she remains proud and satisfied of having made it as far as the closest runner-up of Valerie Weigmann. In fact, she always uses the hashtag #1stPrincess in her recent status updates, and has happily moved on.
This could only mean more doors opening for the beautiful Dumaguete native in other national beauty pageants.
So do I smell a possible joining in either Bb. Pilipinas or Miss Philippines Earth next year? I don’t see why not. She still has a bright future ahead in the world of pageantry. Right, dear readers? :-)
Going to the Greenhills area from Paranaque on a busy Tuesday night can be quite the trying commute. Just thinking of the number of bottlenecks along the way is more than enough to wear me down. But then again, there’s no other way to go about it except face the traffic head-on. The invitation to attend the victory celebration of Aces & Queens for Miss World Philippines 2014 Valerie Weigmann is unmissable, to say the least.
Arriving at Wafu, I was greeted by familiar faces of friends and dear acquaintances. Aside from Jonas Gaffud and the people behind the pageant training group, a list of camp-affiliated beautiful ladies – past, present and future titleholders – made the affair shine even more. In attendance were: Shamcey Supsup-Lee, Mary Anne Bianca Guidotti, Yvethe Santiago, Mary Ann Ross Misa, Christine Balaguer, Janelle Lazo Tee, Justine Felizarta, Monique Trinidad and Carla Lizardo.
The sit down dinner filled everyone’s tummy. Lively talks and pleasantries filled the air. Smiles and laughters came in succession.
Of course, the star of the night made her grand entrance soon enough. And London-bound Val is on a natural high with all the love and support being constantly showered upon her. Never-ending camera clicks and photo ops followed.
Everyone knows that the mission has just started for our Miss World 2014 rep. And if she is fortunate enough to score a big win in London – which equates to an even more fulfilling back-to-back victory with Miss World 2013 Megan Young – then I can only imagine how glorious the jubilation will be. :-D
If you visit the Miss World website’s 2014 candidates section, the photo and profile of Miss World Philippines 2014 Valerie Weigmann have already been uploaded. Actually, the photo above is one of my favorites when she had her photoshoot weeks before the final screening for the national competition.
Read below her Q&A on simple questions thrown in by the Miss World organizers. I reckon that her responses are simple and practical – no conscious effort to be too earthshaking or dramatic, unless you would rather classify climate change as concern somewhere else. ;-)
Miss France 2014 Flora Coquerel is one of the pre-arrival favorites for Miss World 2014 in London, UK.
Image may be NSFW. Clik here to view. This early, Miss France 2014 Flora Coquerel is getting the attention of many pageant fans as a strong contender for Miss World 2014 in London. And I’m not surprised. She has a charming quality that can be easy for people to fall for.
Image may be NSFW. Clik here to view. One of the few contestants who will have the shortest air travel time to the host city come late November, Flora will arrive in the English capital fresh and free from jet lag. And she will also have the advantage of getting a good number of French supporters all throughout the competition. But then again, there is no way that the Filipinos who are out to back up Valerie Weigmann will be outnumbered, right?
Let’s see if this lady will approximate, if not exceed, the performance of Marine Lorphelin in Bali last year. ;-)
Image may be NSFW. Clik here to view. The other night, Miss World Philippines 2014 Valerie Weigmann guested on “Tonight With Arnold Clavio” (TWAC) on GMA News TV. For a change, we saw her softly humorous side instead of the constantly formal and graceful beauty we are used to seeing.
There was even a phone-patch interview with Paolo Ballesteros who was the one who really convinced Val to join a beauty contest.
Whirlwind or not, the past few weeks have gone by so beautifully fast!
Image may be NSFW. Clik here to view. November is coming around so fast that it will already be the 11th month by late next week. And before the middle part, Miss World Philippines 2014 should be given the formal send-off to Miss World 2014 in London before boarding the Philippine Airlines direct flight to the English capital.
Few days back, Valerie has already started filling in her own inputs to the Miss World Philippines Facebook Page which you should be liking by now. Interactions have also started, and it will do well to join in the online huddle so that there will be a beehive of giving and sharing of ideas and replies with our Queen.
Now, as far as the competition evening gown that she will be wearing, I am not at liberty to reveal neither the name of the designer nor the photo of the special creation. Let me just say that it is one spectacular piece that will definitely make Val an ethereal Goddess onstage. My jaw fell in awe, literally. If you want a hint, just follow my clue. There, I’ve said enough.
This is it! Valerie will be conquering London soon. Let us keep the faith and stay by her side all throughout the journey. :-D
Time flies so fast. It feels like only yesterday when Megan Young was crowned Miss World 2013 and wrote the Facebook update above on her Miss World Philippines Page (which has now been taken over by Valerie Weigmann).
In less than two months from now, she will most likely be coming up with a new set of musings that will capture her thoughts about crowning the new winner and leaving behind a track record that would not be easy for anyone else to follow.
And I will be the first one to look forward to the day that she will post her homestretch thoughts. :-)
“One of my main interests is travel photography, a passion I developed due to my fascination of documentaries about the amazing experiences of travel photographers and journalists.” – MWP2014 Valerie Clacio Weigmann
It’s already the 1st of November. And in roughly around two weeks from now, Miss World Philippines 2014 Valerie Weigmann will be leaving for London to compete in Miss World 2014. And at this point, pre-arrival preparations are important. One such crucial part is the Social Media component where gathering the most number of ‘Likes’ for a candidate’s Facebook page is the first step to creating an impact by earning precious points even before the start of battle.
Let us unite in spreading the word. The more likes for Valerie’s Miss World Philippines Facebook Page, the better. Countries like Thailand and India are upping the pace and we need to keep up with the current leaders of the pack.
For her part, Val is prepared to give us the best and most interesting Miss World 2014 social media experience possible. She promises to give feeds that do not only spark positive discussion, but also leave much to ponder about.
Image may be NSFW.
It was an affair full of glitter – and beautiful ladies – alright. 
Image may be NSFW.
