Author:
Kapuso
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Date Posted: 10/23/06 18:09:14
BINIBINING Pilipinas-International Denille Lou Valmonte grew up thinking she was less than pretty.
“I had a lot of crushes when I was in grade school but they didn’t like me,” said the 24-year-old lass. “So I said to myself, ‘someday you will look up to me’.”
Last March, when Denille won the Miss International crown, a lot of people indeed looked up to her, notably those from the Polytechnic University of the Philippines (PUP) where she got her degree in hotel and restaurant management.
“I didn’t know I was the first national beauty titlist from PUP,” said Denille. “I only learned about it when I saw it written on the congratulatory banners posted in the campus.”
It took a deal of persistence from her loved ones before she was convinced she had what it takes to be a beauty queen. “I only knew I was somehow beautiful in high school when I started joining, and winning, contests,” she confessed.
Now, the local media even calls her the brown Lucy Liu because of her striking resemblance to the Hollywood star. “I’d love to see her in person, just to check who’s prettier,” Denille said, giggling.
Last week, Denille flew to Tokyo, Japan, together with reigning Miss International Precious Lara Quigaman, for a series of pageant activities.
Lara will then fly, along with Denille and about 60 more delegates, to Beijing, China, where the Miss International pageant culminates on Nov. 11. Denille hopes for a back-to-back victory for the country.
“I don’t mind the pressure,” Denille said, noting that no country has ever won the Miss International two years in a row. “I will just do my best and hope that the judges will be able to see that I’m worthy of the title.”
She has this assurance from Lara: “Nothing is impossible. There’s no reason why we can’t have another Miss International.”
Winning is important for Denille because it will give her the chance to expand her advocacy of sending to school underprivileged but “intellectually-gifted” children.
“With the title, I will be in a position of influence and it will be easier for me to ask people to support the schooling program,” she said. “More children, not only in the Philippines but in other countries as well, will then be given the chance to be educated.” INQ7.net, Philippines, 22.10.06
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