MANILA, Philippines — Hours before the highly-anticipated coronation of Miss Universe 2018, Philippine bet Catriona Gray reached a social media milestone: jumping past 1 million followers on Instagram.
The 24-year-old Bicolana beauty thanked her supporters on an Instagram post.
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“1 MILLION OF YOU?!?? Thank you for joining in this journey with me!!!” Gray wrote.
A total of 3,281,122 visits to her social media profile were also recorded.
Gray’s parade of Instagram hits came after her viral performances during the preliminary competition last week. Her pageant walk—dubbed as “lava” walk—and her “slow-mo” turn got the approval of no less than supermodel Tyra Banks.
A day before the much-awaited coronation, Gray called for Filipinos’ prayers.
“Next time the sun rises, the Universe will be upon us. Less than 24 hours to go to @missuniverse! Keep sending me prayers mga kababayan!,” Gray wrote.
Gray is eyeing to bring the Miss Universe crown back to the Philippines and follow the footsteps of Pia Wurtzbach, who won the crown three years ago.
The pageant to be held at the Impact Arena in Bangkok, Thailand will begin at 8 a.m. (Manila time). — Gaea Katreena Cabico