Credits to philnews.ph
Miss International 2013 winner has been declared during the pageant's coronation night held at the Shinagawa Prince Hotel Hall in Tokyo, Japan on Tuesday, December 17.
Bea Rose Santiago of the Philippines beat out over 60 candidates around the world to win the coveted title. The 23-year-old fashion model from Masbate capped off her successfully stint with a strong answer to the Top 5 question, "What will you do if you win the Miss International crown?"
"The whole world saw how my country, the Philippines, suffered. The agony of my people was felt. But one by one, country to country, came to help. I would like to thank all the nations that helped my country. In our darkest hours, you have opened my eyes and my heart in how important it is if we all support each other. If I become Miss International, I will uphold international camaraderie to sustain the spirit for sympathy and continually share the message of hope. I believe that whatever calamity that may come to us, as long as we have each other, there will be hope. Thank you."
This is the fifth time that a candidate from the Philippines won in the 53-year-old beauty contest. Santiago followed the footsteps of fellow Filipino Miss International winners Gemma Teresa Cruz (1964), Aurora Pijuan (1970), Melanie Marquez (1979), and Precious Lara Quigaman (2005).
Named first runner-up this year was Miss Netherlands Nathalie den Dekker, while Miss New Zealand Casey Radley was second runner-up. Completing the Top 5 were Miss Colombia Lorena Hermida and Miss Hungary Brigitta Ötvös.
Meanwhile, representatives of Brazil, Ecuador, Gibraltar, Iceland, Lithuania, Russia, Puerto Rico, Spain, Thailand and USA rounded off the Top 15.
Watch the Question & Answer portion here:
