MANILA, Philippines — The morning after she was crowned Miss World Philippines 2017, Laura Lehmann found herself waking up and living a dream that she felt was going to end at any moment.
“Surreal,” the 24-year-old Filipina-American beauty queen said, using the only adjective she could think of to depict how she felt following her victory in the annual pageant’s coronation night last Sunday at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City.
Lehmann posted a lengthy status on her Facebook page @IAmLauraLehmann yesterday afternoon, directly addressing her supporters.
“I woke up this morning just like YOU – with my oversized pajamas, ripped blankets and two dogs beside me, not believing someone as normal as me had a crown on her head,” she said in her post.
“But when I took a moment to reflect, I realized instead that’s the best thing about Miss World Philippines,” she added with a smiley emoji.
The page has 21,817 likes and 22,051 followers.
A former courtside reporter for the Ateneo de Manila University in the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP), Lehmann clinched the title with her well-received and loudly applauded answer to the question that asked her to respond to people “who believe that pageants do not provide an opportunity to empower women.”
“To anyone who doesn’t believe in pageants, I would ask them to take a look at the girls that we have on stage tonight. Because we have lawyers, we have architects, we have women of substance who are here today not only because of what they look like, but also because of what’s in their heart, what’s in their mind and because they brought forth ‘Beauty with a Purpose’ projects. They are here fighting to represent the Philippines and become the best version of a Filipina. And to me, that is something to celebrate, not protest,” she replied.
Lehman will represent the Philippines in the Miss World 2017, the 67th edition of the pageant, in Sanya, China on Nov. 18.
Besides taking home the crown, Lehmann was also named Miss Cosmo Skin, Miss BYS Philippines and the winner in the Multimedia Fast Track category.
Born on July 16, 1993, Lehmann has British, German, Swiss and Spanish roots. She is the girlfriend of Indian-Filipino pro-cager Von Pessumal, a Gilas Pilipinas cadet.
Lehmann joined the Binibining Pilipinas in 2014 and finished as a runner-up before competing in this year’s Miss World Philippines.
“A Miss World queen is just a girl, like me, like YOU – with a passion, a purpose and a dream,” Lehmann further stated in her FB post.
“I joined this pageant because I truly believe in everything in stands for. @MissWorld reminds us all that the greatest beauty is that in giving, and I am so proud to be part of it,” she said, then expressed her gratitude to everyone. “Hindi ko po makakalimutan ang gabi na ito. Para sa bayan (I won’t forget this night. For country).”
Completing the roster of winners in this year’s Miss World Philippines are Glyssa Perez who was adjudged 1st Princess, Zara Carbonell (2nd Princess), Sophia Senoron (Miss Multinational), Winwyn Marquez (Miss Reina Hispanoamericana Filipinas) and Cynthia Tomalla (Miss Eco Philippines).