Beauty & Brawn in Bora

MANILA, Philippines - Beauty pageants have become not only a source of entertainment but also of national pride for many Filipinos.

Pinoys became more pageant-crazy and further upped the ante when beauty queens Shamcey Supsup and Venus Raj shone in the international scene.

Just recently, a different kind of beauty pageant has drawn so many spectators to the beautiful island of Boracay.

Hundreds swarmed the 2012 Century Superbods contest in Station 2 to catch a glimpse of the fittest and most beautiful bodies and good-looking faces in the whole country. Unlike typical beauty pageants, the 2012 Century Tuna Superbods is a tilt that looks for a combination of beauty, brains and brawn.

Two people have lived up to the expectation of a true Century Tuna Superbod: 20-year-old model/ volleyball varsity player Monika Sta. Maria and former US Marine John Spainhour.

Sta. Maria and Spainhour bested 18 finalists who vied for the title.

Sta. Maria, who stands 5’9 tall wowed the crowd not only with her whistle-bait figure but by her intelligence.

In the question and answer portion, Sta. Maria was asked on what to prioritize: helping the poor or saving the Earth?

She chose the environment since this could also mean helping the poor.

“For me, I’ll save Mother Earth first because this is our only sanctuary. In saving Mother Earth, we can also help the poor because we save the environment they live in,” said Sta. Maria, who is also a model.

Spainhour, for his part, was asked what, for him, is the greatest invention and replied “the wheels because everything came from it.”

The two received P500,000 each and

will be featured in a Century Tuna commercial.

Meanwhile, Azel Shane Smith and Malaya publisher’s grandson Jake Macasaet were chosen the first runners-up while Janelle Olafson and JC Rezebek were picked the second runners-ups.

The criteria for judging was 50 percent for beauty and body, 25 percent for the question and answer (healthy mind) and 25 percent for the race challenges.

Special prizes went to Sta. Maria and A.J Hanson for Best in Beach Bodies; Spainhour and Janet Emmerich for the Fierce photo award. Emmerich and JP Yap won the People’s Choice Awards for garnering the highest votes via the voting online.

Smith and Macasaet were declared winners in the Race Challenge competition, which was held in the morning. The contestants run the mile in Boracay, went kayak-racing and did various water sports.

Judges included fashion editor Myrza Sison, fashion designer Rajo Laurel, resort wear designer Charina Sarte, photographer Marc Nicdao, fashion blogger Jenni Epperson, eventologist Tim Yap, Century Tuna general manager Greg Banzon, PC & V Communications president Ariel Comia.

The competition, dubbed Salute to Sexy, was held in front of the Astoria Hotel and was graced by Century Tuna’s celebrity endorsers Anne Curtis, Derek Ramsay and Aljur Abrenica.

It was a sizzling night indeed as the contestants and the celebrities paraded in their skimpy beach wear by Sarte.

The event, which started at 9 p.m., was hosted by Curtis, who was clad in a black bikini with a transparent sarong and a shirtless Ramsay.

Anne said she was amazed at the buffed bodies of the contestants.

She said she practices healthy living herself.

“I limit my calorie intake, I make it a point to eat lots of fruits and vegetables. I also try to exercise, do a little workout. I try to squeeze that in my busy schedule,” Anne said in an interview.

Equally pretty and sexy celebrities Georgina Wilson and Solenn Heussaff, were on hand to give support.

Heussaff, who is said to have just signed a contract with Century Tuna, came in with his boyfriend and were spotted lovey-dovey with each other.

Aljur, on the other hand, could not contain his admiration for Anne, who was oozing with sexiness that night. According to a source, Aljur asked someone to have his picture taken with Anne. Both were seated close to each other at the after- party and at the pageant.

Banzon said in an interview that this year’s finalists came from different walks of life.

“There’s football, volleyball and basketball players. We also have contestants who are into extreme sports like surfing and wakeboarding. We also have models, nurses, actors and a a chef,” Banzon said.

The finalists stood out from the hundreds of aspirants who went at the go-sees held in Manila, Pampanga, Cebu and Davao.

Banzon said the models underwent a rigid personality and physical training, not to mention modeling and speech development training, for two months.

He stressed the Century Superbods is not merely a a beauty search, as they’re looking for someone who will embody the Century Tuna healthy living.

“This is the fourth time we are mounting this search. It is more than just a pretty or handsome face, What we’re looking for is someone who has the discipline and commitment to live healthy and more importantly, inspire others to live a healthy lifestyle,” Banzon said.