"The 2016 Miss World is ... Puerto Rico!"
Filipinos were disappointed after Philippines' bet Catriona Grey failed to bring home the 2016 Miss World crown, ending Filipinos anticipation of a grand slam win for the country's beauty queens. Philippines' Pia Wurtzbach was crowned Miss Universe 2016 and Kylie Versoza bagged the Miss International crown. Catriona Gray only made it to Top 5.
The Miss World Coronation Night was held at the newly-opened MGM National Harbor on December 19, 2016. Along with my assistant camera man, I went there to cover the pageant for my former home network, GMA Network Inc The pageant was set to start at 3 PM but we were there as early as 11 AM.
That gave us enough time to meet some Filipinos, Some of them came all the way from Canada to support Catriona. The General Admission ticket was priced at $300 or about 15,000 Pesos, reasonably-priced compared to an NFL Football Game, but still a hefty amount for someone who earns a minimum wage of $7.50/hour. According to one of the Filipinos I spoke with, who flew all the way from Seattle, Washington, he saved money to be able to show support to our candidate, so he did not mind paying for the coronation night ticket plus hotel's accommodation and flight ticket.
He was in a happy spirit like the other Filipinos waiting in the outside lobby of the theater.
"Go Philippines!" They shouted while holding the Philippine flag.
Others have a cardboard fan with Catriona's photo on it; some made banners. It was an overwhelming support.
The theater opened at about 1:30 PM. The media was escorted to the theater's suites. GMA was assigned to a suite where AP, Reuters and Washington Post were. Video coverage and use of tripod were not allowed. However, we were able to take photos of Catriona and Megan Young who hosted the event.
The coronation night was not how I expected it to be. Most of the segments were pre-recorded. No grand parade of the contestants in their extravagant and colorful national costumes, no grand production numbers. The audience were glued on screen, almost forced to watch the pre-recorded audio visuals. I would say, paying $300 to watch videos is not worth it. But I guess the point was to really show support to your candidate.
As we know now, Philippines did not win. After the program, the audience and Media, were allowed by organizers to go to the stage and greet their candidates. Catriona was thanking her fans, crying while holding the Philippine flag. Filipinos waited another hour in the lobby outside the theater waiting for Catriona Gray to come out and greet them, like other candidates did. But no Catriona showed up.
As for me, I just followed her on Instagram to see what she is up to. After all, for beauty queens like Catriona, there is life after beauty pageants. As for the Philippines, who is a country known for taking beauty pageants seriously, another year is another chance to get that crown!
Filipinos were disappointed after Philippines' bet Catriona Grey failed to bring home the 2016 Miss World crown, ending Filipinos anticipation of a grand slam win for the country's beauty queens. Philippines' Pia Wurtzbach was crowned Miss Universe 2016 and Kylie Versoza bagged the Miss International crown. Catriona Gray only made it to Top 5.
The Miss World Coronation Night was held at the newly-opened MGM National Harbor on December 19, 2016. Along with my assistant camera man, I went there to cover the pageant for my former home network, GMA Network Inc The pageant was set to start at 3 PM but we were there as early as 11 AM.
That gave us enough time to meet some Filipinos, Some of them came all the way from Canada to support Catriona. The General Admission ticket was priced at $300 or about 15,000 Pesos, reasonably-priced compared to an NFL Football Game, but still a hefty amount for someone who earns a minimum wage of $7.50/hour. According to one of the Filipinos I spoke with, who flew all the way from Seattle, Washington, he saved money to be able to show support to our candidate, so he did not mind paying for the coronation night ticket plus hotel's accommodation and flight ticket.
He was in a happy spirit like the other Filipinos waiting in the outside lobby of the theater.
"Go Philippines!" They shouted while holding the Philippine flag.
Others have a cardboard fan with Catriona's photo on it; some made banners. It was an overwhelming support.
The theater opened at about 1:30 PM. The media was escorted to the theater's suites. GMA was assigned to a suite where AP, Reuters and Washington Post were. Video coverage and use of tripod were not allowed. However, we were able to take photos of Catriona and Megan Young who hosted the event.
The coronation night was not how I expected it to be. Most of the segments were pre-recorded. No grand parade of the contestants in their extravagant and colorful national costumes, no grand production numbers. The audience were glued on screen, almost forced to watch the pre-recorded audio visuals. I would say, paying $300 to watch videos is not worth it. But I guess the point was to really show support to your candidate.
As we know now, Philippines did not win. After the program, the audience and Media, were allowed by organizers to go to the stage and greet their candidates. Catriona was thanking her fans, crying while holding the Philippine flag. Filipinos waited another hour in the lobby outside the theater waiting for Catriona Gray to come out and greet them, like other candidates did. But no Catriona showed up.
As for me, I just followed her on Instagram to see what she is up to. After all, for beauty queens like Catriona, there is life after beauty pageants. As for the Philippines, who is a country known for taking beauty pageants seriously, another year is another chance to get that crown!
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