How Miss Earth helped Celeste Cortesi win Miss Universe Philippines 2022

Jan Milo Severo - Philstar.com May 12, 2022 | 9:54am

Celeste Cortesi was crowned as new Miss Earth Philippines in 2018 (left) and as new Miss Universe Philippines 2022 (right)

Philstar.com / Erwin Cagadas Jr., file; MUPH via Facebook

MANILA, Philippines — Miss Universe Philippines 2022 Celeste Cortesi revealed that it was Miss Universe Philippines 2020 Rabiya Mateo who encouraged her to join the pageant this year.

During her recent press conference hosted by PLDT Home, Celeste said she was supposed to join the pageant next year but Rabiya told her to join this year.

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"Me and Rabiya are very close, and I remember that before submitting my application for Miss Universe Philippines, I was talking to her and I was opening up about me wanting to join next year, not this year. I was telling her that I just want to prepare and be ready 100%. [And] If there is something that Rabiya really told me, it's you will never be 100% prepared," Celeste said.

"Rabiya's so straightforward, she's really telling me just go for it, don't think about it too much. [She said] You will never be prepared, you just have to send the application and everything will follow. So it was one of the best advice because I was really listening to her and she's also one of the reasons why I decided to go for it," she added.

The beauty queen from Pasay also said that the Miss Earth pageant really helped her in improving herself in time for the Miss Universe Philippines pageant.

"Now, I have the experience. I know where I have to improve, I know my weaknesses, and I know how to capitalize [on] my strengths as well... In the past four years I've been thinking, I didn't do a great job in my last pageant, but now that I'm Miss Universe Philippines, I know that [Miss Earth] really helped me in improving myself so much," she said.

"You know that whatever happens to you happens for a reason, and this was the reason. The reason why that happened is because now I know what to do, I know how to work on my weaknesses more. I'm just very grateful that I got this second chance to represent the Philippines in the best way I can," she added.

https://www.philstar.com/entertainment/2022/05/12/2180594/how-miss-earth-helped-celeste-cortesi-win-miss-universe-philippines-2022