MANILA, Philippines — The Philippines’ representative to the Miss International 2023 Nicole Borromeo is “expected to deliver a strong performance” in the 61st edition of the Miss International pageant. Her natural charm, sweet personality and strong communication skills will help her secure the seventh Miss International crown for the country.
This year’s Miss International is set on Thursday at the Yoyogi National Gymnasium in Shibuya, Tokyo where Nicole will compete against 69 other contestants.
In an interview with The STAR, beauty camp Aces & Queens head Gerry Diaz said he expects Nicole to “deliver a strong performance” and that she “has a very good chance of winning” the crown.
“Aside from her natural and sweet beauty, Nicole’s refined behavior will surely endear her to the Japanese people and hopefully the judges as well,” noted Diaz. “Her ability to speak some conversational Japanese will be an advantage. With her intelligence and excellent communication skills, I expect her to ace her closed-door interview.
“The evening gown designed by a famous Filipino designer will make her shine on the stage during the finals night. But it is our prayers, the guidance and blessing of the Lord that will guide her to our seventh Miss International crown.”
Diaz mentioned that Borromeo has been “doing very well so far” in the pre-pageant activities. “Her styling was good and (it) brought out her delicate beauty. She stood out even when photographed with the other candidates,” he commented.
Borromeo has also been consistently named among the top picks of beauty pageant websites and is now leading in the online polls conducted by Miss International from the Asia-Pacific region.
The 22-year-old model has been working hard in terms of preparations. She did research, familiarized herself with Japanese culture, learned some Japanese language, aside from undergoing pasarela, physical fitness, styling and question and answer trainings under Aces & Queens.
The Cebuana beauty queen arrived four days ahead of the official start of the pageant’s activities in Japan. She took the opportunity to attend a meet-and-greet event and paid a courtesy visit to Ambassador of the Philippines to Japan Mylene Garcia-Albano.
Borromeo is having a great time in Japan. As shown in her Instagram, she got to visit Kamakura and Kaga cities and interact with the locals, had her first-ever ikebana experience, witnessed the live performances of Japanese artists using traditional string instruments shamisen and koto, had lessons on the art of kabuki and Japanese confectionery making, and joined a tea ceremony with other candidates.
Borromeo’s roommate is Miss Nepal. “Nicole feels lucky because she is a very nice girl. She has made a lot of good friends among her fellow candidates and she counts Miss Peru, Miss Portugal and Miss Estonia among them. They are among the 12 candidates together in Group F,” said Diaz.
The six Filipinas crowned Miss International in past editions were Gemma Cruz-Araneta (1964), Aurora Pijuan (1970), Melanie Marquez (1979), Lara Quigaman (2005), Bea Santiago (2013) and Kylie Verzosa (2016).
Ganbatte kudasai, Nicole-san!