I attended the Binibining Pilipinas 2024 coronation night at the historic Araneta Coliseum on July 7 after getting a free ticket at the last minute from friends whose company was a commercial sponsor for the pageant. I had never attended a beauty pageant before although I watched them on TV in my younger days. Binibini essentially means single young woman.
The event stuck closely to the industry formula – long gowns, swimsuits, outdoor video shoots and interviews. Unless I missed it, no contestant called for world peace despite what’s happening in the West Philippine Sea , Gaza , and Ukraine. The winner, Miss Abra Myrna Esguerra , was a hot favorite before coronation night, and she will compete in the Miss International contest.
She is quite stunning but that’s no surprise. Why are Filipinos crazy about beauty pageants? Because they love beauty and they win a lot of contests. The Philippines so far has won four Miss Universe crowns, ranking number four in the list of countries that have produced the most Miss Universe titleholders.
Gloria Diaz – Miss Universe 1969 Margie Moran – Miss Universe 1973 Pia Wurtzbach – Miss Universe 2015 Catriona Gray – Miss Universe 2018 The first three countries are USA which has had nine, Venezuela seven, and Puerto Rico five. Miss Universe is the most prestigious global pageant. Filipinas have also won Miss International and other titles, and all pageant winners went on to get lucrative show business, modeling, and commercial endo.