The first two years of the Miss Grand International pageant has set the tone for the Philippines in the competition, which would be marked with highs and lows for a country so obsessed with beauty contests.
In the inaugural edition in 2013, former Binibining Pilipinas runner-up Ali Forbes was fielded by her handler, the late John Dela Vega, and finished fourth overall. A promising start.
But the succeeding year was different. Kimberly Karlsson, who was chosen from the first standalone Miss Grand Philippines pageant that Dela Vega mounted, missed the cut.
Bb. Pilipinas Charities Inc. (BPCI) acquired the franchise in 2015, and sent 2014 Bb. Pilipinas Tourism Parul Shah to the contest. Like Forbes, she finished fourth, but she was also the Best in National Costume.
The next year, Nicole Cordoves almost posted the Philippines’ first win when she finished second in the competition. Her successor Elizabeth Clenci finished third overall.
But the Philippines missed the cut anew In the two succeeding editions, with Eva Patalinjug competing in 2018, and the controversial Samantha Lo in 2019.
Two-time Bb. Pilipinas runner-up Samantha Bernardo took it upon herself to redeem the country’s reputation in the global tilt, and sought BPCI’s blessing to compete. She indeed placed, but fell short of the title and was proclaimed first runner-up in the 2020 edition held in early 2021
Samantha Panlilio was sent to the 2021 edition, but went home empty-handed. Seasoned international queen Roberta Tamondong took up the cudgels in 2022.
Fans thought Tamondong would finally become the first Filipino woman to win the Miss Grand International crown, but she only managed a Top 20 finish in the contest in Indonesia.
But a week later, she found herself getting a fifth runner-up placement, after the delegate from Mauritius declined the position, awarded to the five ladies in the Top 10 who did not move on to the final round.
Later that year, the Miss Grand International announced that it was ending its partnership with BPCI, and awarded the franchise to Arnold Vegafria, organizer of the Miss World Philippines pageant.
Brazilian-Filpino ‘Supermodel Me: Revolution’ runner-up Nikki De Moura won in Vegafria’s first staging of his Miss Grand Philippines pageant in 2023. She went home empty-handed from the global tilt.
In 2024, Christine Juliane ‘CJ’ Opiaza convincingly won the national search that concluded just three days before the Miss Grand International delegates were expected to arrive in Thailand for the contest.
Opiaza, who had become a global fan favorite, settled for the first runner-up spot, with the crown going to Rachel Gupta, the first winner from India.
The Miss Grand International crown had remained elusive, fans thought. But the succeeding year had something in store for the Filipino queen.
In May, Gupta stepped down from her throne, and Opiaza assumed the remainder of her reign after officially receiving the crown in Thailand in June.
This year, broacaster and pageant veteran Emma Tiglao hopes to sustain the Philippines’ upward trajectory by posting a back-to-back for the country.
Filipinos will learn her fate at the ‘grand finale’ of the 2025 Miss Grand International pageant at the MGI Hall in Bangkok, Thailand, on Oct. 18.