After a long wait and several near misses, the Philippines finally won its first Miss World title as 23-year-old Megan Young, a Filipino-American actress from Olongapo, captured the coveted crown at the Bali International Convention Center in Bali, Indonesia on Saturday.
The result was posted on the Facebook page of the prestigious beauty pageant as Young bested nine other semifinalists from Brazil, Australia, France, Nepal, England, Indonesia, Spain, Jamaica and Ghana. There were a total of 131 contestants from around the world — the most in the pageant’s history.
“It’s destiny!” Miss World Phillippines franchise holder Cory Quirino said in a text message to InterAksyon. “The honor is not only Megan’s but the Philippines’. We have made history and have proven once and for all that the Filipina is the most beautiful woman in the world! Mabuhay ang Pilipinas,” she added.
Prior to her coronation, Young also figured prominently in three of the preliminary compeititions in the pageant, winning the Top Model challenge and finishing in the Top 5 of the Beach Fashion and Multimedia Award contests.
She achieved her victory despite the malicious resurfacing of her sexy photos from a March 2012 magazine shoot courtesy of what Miss World Philippines franchise holder Cory Quirino called “a smear campaign by a neglible sector of the Philippine pageant industry”.
Megan became the country’s official representative after winning the Miss World Philippines pageant last August in a lopsided contest where she swept most of its special awards, including Best in Fashion Runway, Miss Sports by FILA, Miss Reducin, Miss Olay, Miss Laguna, Miss Bold and Glamorous by Revlon, Miss Figlia and Miss Bench Body.
Also a digital filmmaking student at the De La Salle-College of St. Benilde, Megan recently appeared in the TV5 sexy drama series, “Misibis Bay” and headed the ensemble cast of the independent crime anthology, “Bang Bang Alley”.
Established in 1951, Miss World is the oldest major international beauty pageant in the world and is part of the “Big Four” international beauty pageants that also includes Miss Universe, Miss Earth and Miss International.
source: interaksyon.com
