While everybody’s feeling jolly and bright, the world of beauty pageants is gearing up for the Miss World 2016 event which will be held on Sunday, December 18 in Washington D.C.
It is with pride that I express my support for our candidate Ms. Catriona Gray. This 22-year-old Australian-Filipino model, singer, and blogger has been making us proud since she rose from “candidate number 13” to Miss World Philippines 2016, at the Miss Word Philippines pageant held at The Manila Hotel, Philippines on October 2.
Gray won Best in Swimsuit, Best in Long Gown, and the Fashion Runway award.
I have been hearing great things about our candidate lately as the Miss World organization post updates online. According to numerous reports, the race for best in talent seems to tighten between two contestants: Miss Philippines Catriona Gray and Miss Hungary Tímea Gelencsér. The two are neck-to-neck when it comes to the number of public votes.
Gray’s talent is singing while Miss Hungary Tímea Gelencsér’s is an acrobatic show. Both of them are also the Top 2 in the current Hot Picks for Miss World 2016 by Missosology.
I can’t help but give due credit to her mentor Jonas Gaffud who also trained Janine Tugonon, Shamcey Supsup, Venus Raj, Meagan Young – all of them either won the title or got into the top 5 – and of course, Miss Universe 2015 Pia Wurtzbach. I hope our candidate would be another one of Gaffud’s “title holders.”
It is not at all surprising that Gray captured the hearts of the judges in the talent round because this beautiful lady is into music. According to one article, Gray being “a true native of the birit capital of the world, loves singing and she’s not afraid to belt out an Adele hit. She actually appeared on the the cover of Rogue for their music issue in 2014.”
Gray has a Master Certificate in Music Theory from the Berklee College of Music in Boston. Aside from singing, the Albay, Bicol representative can also play guitar and has a black belt in Choi Kwang Do.
She has been in the entertainment industry for years. Having walked the runway (and even performed) in the annual Bench Body fashion show, as well as being a Pond’s girl. She was born in Cairns to an Australian father, Ian Gray, and a Filipino mother from Oas, Albay, Normita Ragas Magnayon.
In 2007 she was a finalist in the Girlfriend Magazine modelling competition in Australia, subsequently Gray signed with a major modelling agent in Australia that opened doors for her modelling career in Asia. The said competition has discovered a number of top models.
Gray made the decision to move to Manila after finishing high school studies in Australia. Within a few months of arriving in Manila, and still just 18, she was featured as one of Cosmo magazine’s eight sexiest models in the Philippines.
Also featured among the eight sexiest models was Valerie Weigmann, who like Gray is half-Filipino and (also) had just arrived in Manila The girls share the same agent and Valerie represented the Philippines in Miss World 2014 placing in the Top 25 semifinalists.
Gray was also part of Pantene’s “Labels Against Women” commercial. She was one of the women who stood for gender equality.
As most multitalented women, Gray also knows her way around the kitchen. She shares recipes on her blog and snaps photos of her food creations. She also loves – and wears– art. Her hasthag#artbycatrion shows that she’s definitely skilled with a pencil. She recently wore petals as dresses that she designed herself in an editorial titled “Bloom”.
Gray is beautiful both inside and out. Even before joining the competition, she has been actively trying to help end poverty through her advocacy project “Paraiso.” The project aims to nurture a “paraiso” for every child – giving a child an education for a chance to aspire and develop their talents.
I am definitely impressed with all these amazing things that I’ve been learning about Ms. Gray. If only I can join my friends Hydee Abrahan and Lawrence Aizon, who would actually go to Washington DC to support Gray, I would do so in a heartbeat! But then, I’ve already got several commitments during the holidays. Nonetheless, that won’t keep me from wishing Catriona Gray the best of luck.
To Miss World Philippines 2016 Catriona Gray, Good luck and may you conquer the world with you beauty, talent and heart. We will all be cheering for you.
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Monet Lu is a Marikina-born, award-winning celebrity beauty stylist with his own chain of Monet Salon salons across Southern California and Las Vegas, Nevada. Ultimately, Monet is known as an all-around artiste who produces sold-out fashion and awards shows as well as unforgettable marketing campaigns. Monet is also the founder of the revolutionary all-natural beauty products such as Enlighten, your solution to discoloration . To contact Monet, please visit www.monetsalon.com or email him at [email protected]
