Pinay model is second
at Top Model of the World Pageant
By JOSE D. PATAO, JR.
NATALIA Guimaraes of Brazil was crowned as Top Model of the World at the 3-hour glittering pageant held in Kunming, Yunnan Province, China last February 14 while the Philippines' Michelle de Leon was second.
Guimaraes bested 50 other contestants worldwide in the 15-year-old international competition. She was a semi-finalist at last year's Miss Intercontinental pageant and will vie for Miss Brazil Universe on April 14.
The first runner-up was Michelle de Leon of the Philippines, a balikbayan model from Sacramento, California. The 23-year-old, 5-foot-10 model was born in Balanga, Bataan and schooled in Olongapo City. She and her family have been residing in the US for the last five years. She only needed very few points to steal the title from the Brazilian victor.
The second runner-up was Kazakhstan's Tatyana Dmitrivenko.
Michelle got her international pageant break when pageant and fashion guru Renee Salud spotted her at a fashion show in San Francisco last September. Salud then referred Michelle to the local licensee for Top Model of the World.
The daughter of a Filipina mother and a black Puerto Rican father, Michelle is often mistaken for a Latina especially in the Us where she has modeled signature brands in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Miami and New York. She hopes to become a supermodel for the famed Ford Models Agency and would also like to try her luck at next year's Bb. Pilipinas pageant.
Guimaraes bested 50 other contestants worldwide in the 15-year-old international competition. She was a semi-finalist at last year's Miss Intercontinental pageant and will vie for Miss Brazil Universe on April 14.
The first runner-up was Michelle de Leon of the Philippines, a balikbayan model from Sacramento, California. The 23-year-old, 5-foot-10 model was born in Balanga, Bataan and schooled in Olongapo City. She and her family have been residing in the US for the last five years. She only needed very few points to steal the title from the Brazilian victor.
The second runner-up was Kazakhstan's Tatyana Dmitrivenko.
Michelle got her international pageant break when pageant and fashion guru Renee Salud spotted her at a fashion show in San Francisco last September. Salud then referred Michelle to the local licensee for Top Model of the World.
The daughter of a Filipina mother and a black Puerto Rican father, Michelle is often mistaken for a Latina especially in the Us where she has modeled signature brands in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Miami and New York. She hopes to become a supermodel for the famed Ford Models Agency and would also like to try her luck at next year's Bb. Pilipinas pageant.
Michelle de Leon Gallery
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