This is Part 2 of the blog entry where I started sharing the videos of the Miss Universe Philippines 2022 Official Delegates answering the question: “What makes a woman uniquely beautiful?”
Jona Sweett
All posts tagged Jona Sweett
After the reveal of the Top 50 Official Delegates for Miss Universe Philippines 2022, the excitement has started to build up even more. There will always be favorites as early as now. So let me share mine. The actual pre-pageant challenges have not started yet. So this list of twenty (20) can easily change after each hurdle. But for now, I will keep an eye on:
Celeste Cortesi of Pasay
Michelle Dee of Makati City
Pauline Amelinckx of Bohol
Katrina Llegado of Taguig City
Lou Dominique Piczon of Cebu Province
Vanessa Caro of Iloilo Province
Chantal Elise Schmidt of Cebu City
Annabelle Mae McDonnell of Misamis Oriental
Julia Saubier of Albay
Francheska Alexine Dadivas of Roxas City
Angelica Lopez of Palawan
Dorothy Gemillan of Iloilo City
Nyca Bernardo of Bulacan Province
Lyza Katrina Samalio of Ilocos Norte
Jona Sweett of Aklan
Sashi Chiesa of Lapu-Lapu City
Jedidah Korinihona of Davao del Sur
Zeneth Joy Bueno Kahn of Isabela
Mary Dawn Molina Abiera of Sultan Kudarat
Ghenesis Latugat of Baguio City
#MissUniversePhilippines2022
Honor Roll
Miss World Philippines 2017 – # 15 Laura Lehman
Miss Eco Philippines – #32 Cynthia Thomalla
Reina Hispanoamericana Filipinas – #9 Teresita Senn Marquez
Miss Multinational Philippines 2017 -# 35 Sophia Senoron
1st Princess – #3 Glyssa Perez
2nd Princess- #24 Zara Carbonell
Just as I predicted, Laura Lehmann did well in the competition to succeed Catriona Gray. She is Sanya-bound and is now your Miss World Philippines 2017.
Teresita Ssen Marquez is the very first Reina Hispanoamericana Filipinas and will travel to Bolivia for the Latina-dominated competition.
Cebuana Cynthia Thomalla will go to Egypt for Miss Eco International 2017. She now carries the title Miss Eco Philippines.
The surprise titleholder of the night is Sophia Senoron who nailed the Miss Multinational Philippines crown with a pageant assignment in India.
1st Runner-Up is Glyssa Perez and 2nd Runner-Up is Zara Carbonell.
The remaining four in the Top 10 are Janela Joy Cuaton, Jona Sweett, Cristina Coloma and Sheila Marie Reyes.
Congratulations to all the winners!
My Top 15 for Miss World Philippines 2017
It will be a 5-way battle for the Miss World Philippines 2017. This is so unlike all previous editions of the national pageant when either one or two would end up as the clear last two women standing (or one locked-in winner) during finals night.
Consider these past trends:
2011: Gwen Ruais and Nicolette Henson
2012: Queenie Rehman and Mary Ann Misa
2013: Megan Young and Janicel Lubina
2014: Valerie Weigmann and Lorraine Kendrickson
2015: Hillarie Parungao and Cassandra Naidas
2016: Catriona Gray all the way!
This year, it will be tough zeroing in on just one – let alone two – solid candidates for the top crown because there are five (5) potential winners this time around.
Five for Miss World Philippines 2017
I will try to qualify their respective strengths more objectively now.
Jona Sweett has the relaxed beauty that is underscored by a passionate advocacy for the Ati people of Aklan. She speaks respectably well and has the full determination to wrest the title from the other four;
Cynthia Thomalla has the undeniable beauty that could easily land her the lead role in a remake of “The Princess Diaries” with Anne Hathaway playing her mom. Her ability to communicate, though, remains suspect in terms of fluidity of ideas and the like. But if charm is jacked up 10x more, then she could fish all the judges’ nods – hook, line and sinker;
Janela Joy Cuaton has the effervescent beauty that can captivate in a flash. While she may be the youngest among the five, her source of a meaningful (beauty with a) purpose is just as hard as the rock of Gibraltar. She may stumble a bit here and there, but the focus remains in place;
Teresita Ssen Marquez is the all-around Pinay charmer who has practically every ingredient in her possession – beautiful face, zero-fat shapely body, precision-built dancing talent and an inspired speaking ability that leads to a refined self-expression – but the less than middling height;
Laura Lehmann lacks that teeny weeny charge of flirtatiousness to amp up her bid. But hey, nobody’s perfect. From my vantage point, that is my only qualm about her. When she failed to make Top 7 in Beach Beauty, I knew that the one quality missing is her inability to fully work out her physical style in public. But then again, swimsuits are out in Miss World so that will leave her elegance and sophistication to benefit from a dash of tempered playfulness. Oh, she can communicate well, by the way. And her PREP (Promoting Rural Education in the Philippines) BWAP appears more doable than dreamy – not earthshaking but definitely warm-hearted in approach and sustainability.
It’s quite obvious now that Laura is my pick for Miss World Philippines.
Now how about the three other titles?
The ten remaining ladies in my Top 15
I would – without much of an analysis – select Gabriela Ortega for Reina Hispanoamericana Filipinas because of her beautiful face and fluency in Spanish. Being an Architect could also add up to a pretty nice back story. Her figure, though, is a constant reminder that there will always be default parameters on how we want our representatives to look like in swimsuits. If that will get in the way, then I would agree to sending Teresita Ssen Marquez to Bolivia because she will definitely do everything that it takes to learn speaking Spanish, even in basic conversations at the very least. Heck, she might even get into it religiously just like memorizing long lines from a script!
For Miss Multinational Philippines, Janela Joy Cuaton or Cynthia Thomalla would be preferable choices. Their attractive qualities – both inside and out – will shine in New Delhi regardless of the competition.
And lastly, Miss Eco Philippines is one title I have now earmarked for either Jona Sweett or Zara Carbonell. Either the laid-back sensuality of the former or the engaging presence of the latter will get plus points in Egypt.
So in reverse order, my Top 15 would be ranked this way:
15- Chelsea Manalo, 14- Jeanyfer Ozbot, 13- Cristina Coloma, 12- Nikki Deveza, 11- Sheila Marie Reyes, 10- Ella Eiveren Lubag, 9- Ethel Abellanosa, 8- Glyssa Perez, 7- Zara Carbonell, 6- Gabriela Ortega, 5- Jona Sweett, 4- Cynthia Thomalla, 3- Janela Joy Cuaton, 2- Teresita Ssen Marquez and 1- Laura Lehmann.
Having personally met and talked to the 35 Official Candidates of Miss World Philippines 2017, I am sharing my early choices but tweaking the presentation just a little bit. There are four (4) titles at stake, so I decided to come up with four (4) potential winners for each one of them. Of course, it would be possible for four choices for the highest title to grab all crowns in the end. But that would be spoiling the chances of the rest who will definitely make the all-important first cut of the pageant. But in essence, these are the sixteen (16) contenders I am shortlising for now.
For Miss Eco Philippines where the winner will travel to Egypt for her competition, I have placed (from top photo clockwise) Ella Eiveren Lubag, Chelsea Manalo, Rose Flores and Nikki Deveza. This is such a diverse quartet with a Chinese-looking, a half-American, a half-Indian and a full Filipina in the mix. The competition and varied preference in the host country could favor one of them.
For Miss Multinational Philippines who will fly to New Delhi, India in December, I have set aside (from top clockwise) Sheila Marie Reyes, Trizha Ocampo, Jeanyfer Ozbot and Jona Sweett. Methinks that the host country would love to see either a sweet-looking lady (Sheila or Jeanyfer) or a fiery Pinay with Latina-ish vibe (Trizha or Jona) representing the Philippines.
Now it gets more interesting for Reina Hispanoamericana Filipinas who will visit Bolivia in South America for the first time. Do we favor a Spanish-speaking Barcelona-raised Gabriela Ortega as shoo-in? Or do we go for the exotic and statuesque Ethel Abellanosa? How about world traveler Zara Carbonell? Or maybe the Australia-raised Boholana Glyssa Perez? It’s supposed to be free for all, but this is one title that Gabriela should have in the bag at the onset. Unless she allows the other comers to nose her out.
And the biggest title of them all? There are four in the hunt for Miss World Philippines who will fly to Sanya, China for Miss World 2017. And they are – without a doubt – the solid front-runners this year. Heck, they might even be the four eventual titlists! Consider Cynthia Thomalla, Janela Joy Cuaton, Teresita Ssen Marquez and Laura Lehmann. One of them is very likely to succeed Catriona Gray, in my opinion.
Your thoughts, dear readers? 🙂
Miss World Philippines 2017 Candidate Jona Sweett
With the Ati kids of Aklan
Watch her video now.
courtesy of Raffy Cooper
At the poolside of New World Makati Hotel
Earlier in the day, the thirty-five (35) Official Candidates of Miss World Philippines 2017 were presented to the media at both the Ballroom 2 and poolside of New World Hotel in Makati City. The beautiful comers jockeyed up for positions in the eyes of the press to get the important attention to ve interviewed and featured in their respective PRs.
Miss World Philippines 2016 Catriona Gray added the extra glitter to the event, along with National Director Arnold Vegafria and GM Bessie Besana.
The 35 Official Candidates (with their official numbers) are:
1) Shawntel Cruz
2) Veronica Villones
3) Glyssa Perez
4) Rose Flores
5) Kaycie Lyn Fajardo
6) Jona Sweett
7) Jane Darren Genobisa
8) Nikki Deveza
9) Teresita Ssen Marquez
10) Leidda Paulette Babasanta
11) Gabriela Ortega
12) Henna Kaizelle Cajandig
13) Kathryn Jade Cudiamat
14) Cristina Marie Coloma
15) Laura Lehmann
16) Ethel Abellanosa
17) Jellie Alliana Escandon
18) Angel Alvaira
19) Joanna Rabe
20) Trizha Ocampo
21) Netania Deveza
22) Chelsea Anne Manalo
23) Princess Laureano
24) Zara Carbonell
25) Karren Dela
26) Janela Joy Cuaton
27) Ella Eiveren Lubag
28) Sheila Marie Reyes
29) Krystle Anne Ongjanco
30) Kathkeen Gomez
31) Jeanyfer Ozbot
32) Cynthia Thomalla
33) Noelle Uy-Tuazon
34) Andrea Poliquit
35) Sophia Senoron
The instant favorites from this roster are the familiar names and faces like Teresita Ssen Marquez, Cynthia Thomalla, Laura Lehmann, Janela Joy Cuaton, Gabriela Ortega and Jona Sweett. But a few more of the ladies also drew a lot of supporters from the audience such as Zara Carbonell (daughter of actor Cris Villanueva), Glyssa Perez (Miss Bohol 2016) and Noelle Uy-Tuazon (the Forensic Anthropologist from the US who is now representing Davao).
Aside from Miss World Philippines who will represent the country in Miss World 2017, three (3) other titles will be given away: Reina Hispanoamericana Filipinas, Miss Multinational Philippines and Miss Eco Philippines.
Finals will be on September 3 at the MOA Arena with a slightly delayed telecast over GMA-7.
Miss Earth 2015 Angelia Ong and Miss Air 2015 Dayanna Grageda led the opening of the Race to 1 Million Seedlings Nursery of the AFP
Just recently, Miss Earth Foundation partnered with the Civil Relations Group of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) for the opening of the Race to 1 Million Seedlings Nursery which will serve as its nurturing place till the start of the actual planting season for the same.
Leading the charge of the environment-focused beauties was Miss Earth 2015 Angelia Ong and her Miss Air 2015 Dayanna Grageda of Australia, alongside the country’s elemental reps Catherine Joy Marin (Water), Carla Valderrama (Fire) and Jona Sweett (Eco-Tourism)
The Race to 1 Million Seedlings is a project that aims to plant 1 Million Trees within the National Capital Region (NCR) in one year and enhance the environmental protection awareness among different communities.
Photo ops with the Miss Earth beauties now
Don’t worry if you don’t have the area to plant the seedlings. You can always coordinate with R1MS inside Camp General Emilio Aguinaldo to participate in the seed-potting activities thay will be regularly held during the projected period of completion within the year. This is open to individuals or groups who are willing to be part of the important endeavor.
Note: Cash donations not accepted. Instead, you will be given a list of polybag and fruit seedling suppliers with whom you can make arrangements with.
Fruit trees and indigenous trees (like Narra) are recommended. DENR has now discouraged the planting of Mahogany Trees in urban areas since they have been found to destroy the water table.
The winners of Miss Philippines Earth Malay 2015 led by Honey Christy Bandiola (center). Photo credit goes to Gerald Inocencio of G&J Photography
Miss Philippines Earth Malay 2015 Honey Christy Bandiola
Host Angelee Delos Reyes made sure that the pageant was properly navigated
Other winners were Buena Pelayo (Water), Kate Montojo (Fire) and Crescielle Aron (Eco-Tourism).
Congratulations to the Malay LGU, Environmental Management Services Unit, Director Ronald King and everyone involved in the successful production of Miss Philippines Earth Malay 2015! 🙂
Left-to-right: Jona Sweett, your blogger, Victor Ortega and Carla Valderrama
Jona Sweett is looking gorgeous in this Gerald Inocencio photoshoot for Designer Adriano Samar
Just recently, Miss Philippines Eco-Tourism 2015 Jona Sweett had a pictorial for photographer Gerald Inocencio while wearing some of the latest works of Aklan-based designer Adriano Samar whom I featured here weeks back.
Against the breathtaking backdrop of some of the still-unspoilt and unexplored areas of Boracay Island, Jona was at her most beautiful as she posed and projected with such ease. But then again, you look at the gowns she is garbed with and the effect is just as sparkling.
If you want to see more of this photoshoot, just click HERE.
Adriano Samar's creation is making Jona Sweett look more fiercely divine
What a very alluring capture of Jona and the Adriano Samar bridal number
normannorman.com 