Miss Universe 2015 Front-runner

Pia was not a standout in every round but she made it a point to make every cut and did her final blow in the Top 5 and then Top 3 Q&A.

The ballgame has always been like that in the Miss U pageant. The front-runner not being able to sustain the fight when the dimension of the competition changes from beauty (form) to wits (being).

Take the case of Caroline Izsak of Venezuela who was a complete standout in Miss Universe 1992 but was given a mediocre interview score in the Top 6 making her not to advance to final 3.

The pageant was won by Namibia's Michelle McLean. Now it should be noted that McLean was just a semifinalist in the Miss World 1991 pageant which Ninibeth Leal of Venezuela won. Leal on the other hand was Izsak's runner up in the Miss Venezuela national pageant. Of all those instances that Venezuela failed to win the crown despite a very strong performance, it was with Izsak's that they feel they were robbed of the crown

And who could forget Mika Chulina of Venezuela taken over by Dayanara Torres of Puerto Rico in Miss Universe 1993? Minorca Mercado again of Venezuela versus Sushmita Sen of India in Miss Universe 1994 in the Phil. Our very own Miriam Quiambao versus Mpule Kwelagobe of Bootswana in 1999.

Pia's failure in Binibining Pilipinas 2013 and 2014 helped her get into this mindset that every round counts. She aced all the segments during the Miss Universe 2015 finals without any reservation.

Just like Perez Hilton said, Colombia came to lose, while Philippines came to win.

Binibining Pilipinas 2015 Frontrunners - Christi Lynn McGarry

Having a contestant with a complete package in the Binibining Pilipinas seems too good to be true. More often than not, when a contestant has a complete package, it's either she has been a contestant in the past year, or if not, she would eventually be removed from the roster because of issues like citizenship or conflict with their prior endorsement engagements.

Who can forget Joey Mead (2001), Juliana Palermo (2003). Sandra Seifert (2009) and even Megan Young (2012). And in few instances wherein a strong contender goes through and snag a title, they get stripped of their title because of citizenship issues like what happened to Anjanette Abayari (1991), Tisha Silang (1998) and Janelle Bautsita (1999).

This year however, one strong contender made sure she got her bases covered. While Christi Lynn McGarry was born and raised in the US, she stayed in Nabua, Camarines Sur and immersed with the Bicolanos to solidify her Filipino-roots

Fast Facts:

Full Name: Christi Lynn McGarry
Hometown: Nabua, Camarines Sur
Height: 1.80 meters (5 ft 11 in)
Hair Color: Brown
Eye Color: Brown


Previous Pageants:

Mutya ng Pilipinas Asia Pacific
Top Model of the World 2010 (Top 15)
Miss Intercontinental 2010 (Top 15 & Queen of Asia & the Pacific)



Here are some points to consider about Christi Lynn:

Pageantry. While she is not a Binibining Pilipinas veteran like Pia Wurtzbach, Christi Lynn has two international pageant appearance under her belt. She consistently placed on the semi-finals in both Top Model of the World 2010, and Miss Interncontinental 2010.

Communication Skills. Being born and raised in the US, the ability to converse in English with ease is a given. Not only that, she graduated Valedictorian from the grammar school Our Lady of Victories in Jersey City, New Jersey.

Foreign Sounding Last Name. While on a personal note I find her a potential contender for the Miss Universe 2015, history told that aside from Joyce Burton in 1985, no one else with a foreign sounding last name got to represent Philippines in the Miss Universe pageant. Normally, for a foreign-sounding-last-name-contender like McGarry, should be awarded a title, it would be Miss International. Take the case of Yedda Marie Mendoza Kittilstved (1996), Susan Jane Juan Ritter (1997), Colette Centeno Glazer (1998), Lalaine Bognot Edson (1999), Nadia Lee Cien dela Cruz Shami (2007), Melody Adelheid Manuel Gersbach (2009), Krista Eileen Arrieta Kleiner (2010), and Nicole Cassandra Maturan Schmitz (2012).

Hopefully the above-mentioned trend gets broken by Mcgarry and she be chosen to represent Philippines in the Miss Universe 2015 pageant. 

Binibining Pilipinas 2015 Frontrunners - Pia Wurtzbach

One thing that made Miss Universe Philippines Mary Jean "MJ" Lastimosa to stand out in the Bb. Pilipinas 2014 pageant was her maturity being a three-peater of the pageant. This is also the same strength that Pia Wurtzbach is enjoying in this year's pageant.




Fast Facts:



Full Name: Pia Alonso Wurtzbach
Hometown: Cagayan de Oro City, Misamis Oriental Philippines
Height: 1.73 meters (5 ft 8 in)
Hair Color: Brown
Eye Color: Brown







Below are some points that puts Pia on the front row.


Showbiz Industry Background. Just like Megan Young, her exposure to limelight is an edge she gets to enjoy comes pageant night. When put under pressure, a showbiz insider like her can still maintain poise and grace without exerting an effort. She just needs to avoid staying on the safe side though, like what happened when she was asked by Senator Sonny Angara in Filipino during the Binibining Pilipinas 2014 pageant.

Being a Three-peater. Her third attempt is reminiscent of MJ Lastimosa's comeback in the Bb. Pilipinas 2014. They were both runners-up on their first attempt. Both failed to snag a major placement on their second. Subconsciously, their failure on their second attempt put them in a very good position in terms of awareness and strategizing.

In 2012, MJ Lastimosa was under the pressure to outwit Janine Tugunon, knowing that Janine's selling point was her eloquence and poetic approach in answering questions. Reason why MJ was prompted to use big words like "pheriperals" which apparently she wasn't able to substantiate.

Pia did the same thing in 2014. Being a repeater, she was under the pressure of taking her being articulate up a notch. It's a pity though that she succumbed to the displaced nationalism of Senator Sonny Angara asking her a question in Filipino when apparently, a big percentage of the judging panel was made up of foreign dignitaries.

Communication Skills. With or without talent-camp-prep on how to answer questions, Pia has achieved a certain level of wit that would leave her not buckling even when asked the most complex of questions. She reminds me of Janine Tugunon who consistently adhered to the global-standard in answering beauty-pageant-questions; 3 to 5 sentences.

Having said all that, I personally find her a good cut out for the Miss International title as opposed to being a Miss Universe. Hopefully she gets to replicate the same comeback as MJ did last year.