Karen Gallmann is Hot Favorite for the 47th Miss Intercontinental crown

Indeed, there’s a beautiful reason for Bohol to be smiling a lot these days. You see, Karen Juanita Boyonas Gallman who traces her roots in Ubay, Bohol is representing the Philippines in the ongoing 47^th edition of the Miss Intercontinental Pageant being held here in the country. 

Karen Gallman is enjoying herself immensely at the pageant

Ms. Gallman, born in Ubay, Bohol to retired World War II German soldier Gavin William Gallman and a native from Bohol Editha Boyonas. She had her formative years in Ubay, Bohol where she also had her primary school education. 

Karen Sizzles in Her Swimsuit Shoot

Photo Credits: Raymond Saldana Photography

She was even crowned Miss Ubay 2007 although she didn’t compete in Miss Bohol that year.The family later migrated to Brisbane, Australia. She has a degree in Business Arts major in Management at the Griffiths University in Brisbane, Australia.

PRESS PRESENTATION STANDOUT. Karen Gallman is recipient of both 

the Standout Beauty & Media Favorite awards

PRESS FAVE Karen is competing with more than 80 beauty delegates from around the world and during the 47^th Miss Intercontinental Pageant Press Presentation held at the Visayas Ballroom, Sofitel Philippine Plaza, Pasay City, January 10, she won both the Standout Beauty and the Media Favorite awards.    

PRELIM WINNERS. Belarus is Best in Gown, Paraguay is Best in Swimsuit & 

Philippines is Miss Body Beautiful   Photo Credits: Aya Tantiangco

BEAUTY OF BOHOL SHINES THROUGH 

PRELIMS STANDOUT During the swimsuit & evening gown preliminaries held earlier this week at Okada Manila, Karen was given the Body Beautiful award, a special prize from the pageant’s sponsor.

With three special awards, Karen has now been installed as one of the top favorites for the Miss Intercontinental crown which has been very elusive to the Filipina bets.  The closest we had to winning was the 1st Runner Up finish of both Katarina Rodriguez last year and Christi Lynn Mc Garry back in 2015.

Shall we see the crowning of a Boholana as the first Filipina Miss Intercontinental?

We shall find out this Saturday, January 26 at the Mall of Asia Arena

Angela Ponce Aims to Become First Transgender Miss Universe

Just like any beauty pageant, Miss Universe 2018 also has its fair share of controversies. The most talked about however is the participation of Angela Ponce of Spain who is the very first transgender in history to participate in Miss Universe after she won the Miss Universe Spain 2018 pageant. 

Will Angela Ponce go all the way to the final round?

Seconds before she was named Miss Spain

The Spanish senorita was one of the most applauded candidates during the National Costume Competition and the Presentation Show (also known as the preliminary swimsuit & evening gown competitions). 

Poise & elegance during the 

National Costume competition

After an impressive performance during the preliminaries, the transgender candidate has now been installed as one of the crown favorites from the Europe continental grouping. 

She was one of the standouts during the preliminaries

Aside from fulfilling a childhood dream to compete in Miss Universe, Angela aims to use the Miss Universe platform to convey her message of inclusion, tolerance and respect for the LGBT community. 

Acknowledging her Thai fans with a queenly wave

With crown favorite Catriona Gray of the Philippinesa

Bonding with the girls

Win or lose, her participation is already a landmark victory for the transgender community.

At home, she works for the Daniela Foundation, a Spanish non-profit organization working with children and families dealing with gender identity issues.

"So many children face discrimination for being different. It is important to tell them they have a right to be who they are, who they want to be,"

Will Angela Ponce become the first transgender to be crowned Miss Universe?

"I was born into a world, into a society which really wasn't prepared for me. I had the support of my family, but I still faced discrimination, and I had no role models," she said. 

Watch Miss Universe 2018 will be telecast today from the IMPACT Arena in Bangkok, Thailand at ABS CBN Channel 2, 8 am and will be aired in more than 190 countries to an estimated half a billion viewers.  

Why Catriona Gray Should be Miss Universe 2018

If the stars will align in her favor and if it is in her destiny, then Catriona Elisa Magnayon Gray will be the Philippines’ fourth Miss Universe after Gloria Diaz 1969, Margarita Moran 1973 and Pia Wurtzbach 2015. 

PROPHETIC PHOTO? (L-R) Catriona with Miss Universe 2017 Demi-Leigh Nel-Peters &

Miss U 2015 Pia Wurtzbach & Miss U 2016 Iris Mittenaere

Okada Hote, Parañaque, May 2018

Never before has the Philippines been represented by a very strong candidate , a complete package so to speak, than Ms. Catriona Gray, who is affectionately called Cat, Meow or Muning by her legions of fans all over the world. Even before setting foot in Bangkok, Thailand, the venue for the 67^th Miss Universe Pageant, she has already rewritten pageant history records as the first Filipina to ever compete in both Miss World and Miss Universe. She represented the country in Miss World 2016 where she placed in the Final Five out of more than 100 beauty delegates.

Catriona at one of the pre- pageant events & mobbed by Thai fans upon arrival in Bangkok

The most awaited and most documented arrival by any Miss Universe delegate.

Royal Thai Police had to step in guard her from the adoring mob & TV crews 

Pageant websites all over the world have her in their prediction lists as one of the frontrunners even before the pageant officially started. Catriona is also one of the most popular candidates among the Thais and the pageant sponsors. After the preliminaries a couple of nights ago, she has been installed as the Girl to Beat. Her swimsuit and evening gown presentations were flawless.

CATRIONA AT THE PRELIMS: Fabulous. Fierce.Fashionable Filipina

SIMPLY THE BEST CHOICE Simply put, Catriona has everything that the Miss Universe Organization is looking for; confidently beautiful, a universally appealing & commercially viable beauty, a powerful social media following (she is ranked # 1 among the Miss Universe 2018 candidates with the highest number of Instagram followers at 927,000) plus the eloquence and maturity.  

Miss Philippines with her LuzViMinda attire & props

during the Miss Universe National Costume Competition

From a pageant, business and marketing perspective, Catriona Gray should be Miss Universe 2018. In terms of business, she will be a highly sought after endorser, brand ambassador, and model.

MISS UNIVERSE BEHIND THE SCENES: Catriona with her Miss U sisters

Your Roving Eye is very confident of the strong probability of Miss Philippines being crowned Miss Universe 2018, there is also the possibility that there might be another frontrunner or even a dark horse who might snatch the crown from her. As we all know, pageants can be very unpredictable.

A frontrunner status does not guarantee a crown and in fact, during the last 10 editions of Miss Universe, only four heavy favorites went on to win the crown. They are Dayana Mendoza of Venezuela 2008, Ximena Navarette of Mexico 2010, Paulina Vega of Colombia 2014 and Demi Leigh Neal Peters from South Africa 2017. 

MISS UNIVERSE 2018 CROWN FAVORITES

MISS UNIVERSE 2018 SELECTION COMMITTEE

L-R: Lili Gil Valletta, Bui Simon, Monique Lhuillier, Michelle McLean,

Iman Oubou, Janaye Ingram and Richelle Singson-Michael

For the first time ever in Miss Universe history, the selection committee is composed entirely of women. Incidentally, two of the judges are Filipinas. They are world- class fashion designer Monique Lhuilier and Archt. Richelle Singson- Michael. It’s also the first time in over 20 years that the preliminary selection committee will also be the panel of judges on coronation day.

Prior to the preliminary competition last Thursday, Gray, along with her fellow candidates, met with the selection committee through a panel interview for their accomplishments and aspirations. 

Scheduling the interviews ahead of the preliminary swimsuit & evening gown competitions would certainly produce pleasant surprises and shocking exclusions. After hearing and seeing the girls really up close and personal, the committee would surely have a more favorable impression on the girls they liked during the interviews. Expect the unexpected tomorrow upon the revelation of who made the Top Twenty.

HOW IS MISS UNIVERSE 2018 CHOSEN?

This year’s Miss Universe edition has 94 candidates, the highest number so far in its 67 year history. Expect a lot of surprises tomorrow as Miss Universe is looking not only for a beautiful face but also for a spokesperson and ambassador. A premium is now given for the speaking skills, as well as the academic & career achievements of the ladies.

Early this week, the preliminary swimsuit and evening gown competition was conducted. The girls’ preliminary scores along with the results from their closed- door panel interview scores will determine which of the 94 ladies will move to the next round. The Top Twenty will be determined by Continents Plus. Europe, Asia- Oceania and Africa, and North and South America will each have five representatives. The remaining five slots are for the “wild card” candidates, whose selection will be regardless of their continent.

TOP TWENTY will go straight to an opening statement, which means a 15-second statement with host Steve Harvey. This will determine the next cut – Top 10.

TOP TEN will go through both Swimsuit and Evening Gown Competitions. Their composite scores in the two segments will pave the way for the ladies with the five highest scores to advance.

FINAL FIVE will now have a Q&A – again with host Steve Harvey that will secure three (3) of them spots in the Final Round.

TOP THREE will have one (1) ultimate question to answer for the judges to decide who will be Miss Universe and her runners up.

So who will sizzle or fizzle tomorrow? Who will be crowned Miss Universe 2018? Catch the drama and the excitement when it happens tomorrow Monday, Dec 17, 8 am,  ABS CBN Channel 2 or at any live streaming sites online

#CatrionafortheWin

   

Angela Ponce is First Transgender to Compete in Miss Universe

The recent victory of Angela Ponce as Miss Universe Spain means that she will now enter pageant history books as the first transgender national titleholder to compete in Miss Universe.

First transgender to compete in Miss Universe

Spaniards and pageant fans all over the world have mixed reactions with her victory. The revision of the Miss Universe eligibility rules back in 2012 that allows transgenders to compete in Miss Universe was an offshoot of Canadian transgender Jenna Talacova’s petition to be allowed to compete in Miss Universe Canada. It wasn’t a Cinderella finish though for Ms. Talacova reached only the Top Twelve.               

Will she make Miss Universe history 

Angela finally has the chance to make her dream come true. Will she become the first transgender to win the Miss Universe crown? It’s anybody’s guess at this point.

La simpatica senorita Angela Ponce

Boholana Beauty in Bb Pilipinas 2018

Karen Boyonas Gallman 

Karen Boyonas Gallmann of Ubay  who traces her roots in Ubay, Bohol is one of the official candidates for Bb Pilipinas 2018. 

She first competed in Bb. Pilipinas back in 2012 where she made it as one of the Top Twelve Finalists and was selected by press photographers as Miss Photogenic.

Karen was born in Sept 27, 1992 in Ubay, Bohol to retired World War II German soldier Gavin William Gallman and a native from Bohol Editha Boyonas. 

She was raised in Brisbane, Australia. She has degree in Business Arts major in Management at the Griffiths University in Brisbane, Australia.

Karen Boyonas Gallman: Will she be the second Boholana to win a Bb Pilipinas crown?

Six years after her first attempt at Bb. Pilipinas,  Karen is back and has been picked by most pageant experts and websites as one of the most likely to win one of the crowns this year. If that happens, she will be the second Boholana to be crowned a Bb Pilipinas queen.

Watch the 55^th edition of Bb Pilipinas Grand Coronation Night, 7 pm, SMART Araneta Coliseum. Delayed telecast at ABS CBN Channel 2