Philippine representative Katarina Rodriguez made the Philippines proud with her first runner up finish at the Miss Intercontinental pageant held in Hurghada, Egypt on Thursday, January 25 (Manila time).
Katarina wowed the judges with her impressive performance in the swimsuit and evening gown portions. Proving that she has both form and substance, she garnered tremendous applause during the question and answer portion when she said that she was inspired by the Arabic word “meraki” and that the greatest lesson she learned while participating in the pageant was “to do all things with soul, passion and creativity.”
As the top Asian candidate in the competition, Katarina was also named Miss Intercontinental Asia and Oceania. Katarina also placed in the top 3 of the pageant’s online poll.
In a Facebook video posted by Miss Intercontinental, Katarina said, teary-eyed, “Okay lang ito. I miss all of you. I miss my country. It was a tough ride – it was a lot of work, a lot of hours. Mabuhay! Mahal kita!”
Mexico’s Veronica Salas was adjudged Miss Intercontinental 2017. Rounding up the Top 6 were the Netherlands’ Cathelijne Heppenhuis, Brazil’s Amanda Cardoso, Colombia’s Lizeth Villanueva, and online poll winner Lee Su Jin of Korea.
Katarina, whose advocacies include peace and HIV-Aids awareness, duplicated the first runner up finish of 2015 Philippine bet Christi Lynn McGarry. Last year’s representative, Jennifer Hammond, placed in the Top 15.
Katarina, along with the other Binibining Pilipinas 2017 queens, proved the Philippines remains a powerhouse in the pageant world. Nelda Ibe won first runner up in Miss Globe. Elizabeth Clenci placed second runner up in Miss Grand International. Rachel Peters and Chanel Olive Thomas emerged in the Top 10 of Miss Universe and Miss Supranational, respectively.