Miss Grand Philippines CJ Opiaza flies to Cambodia tomorrow
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CJ Opiaza hopes to bring home the country's first Miss Grand International crown.
Newly-minted Miss Grand Philippines CJ Opiaza is hitting the ground running as she is set to jet off to the Miss Grand International pageant just days after winning the crown.
In one of the recent posts on the Miss Grand Philippines official Instagram account, the organization announced that CJ will fly to Phnom Penh, Cambodia tomorrow, October 3 to compete for the Miss Grand International crown. The send-off will happen at 10 p.m. and include a press conference.
In the caption to the post, the organization shared that CJ has “worked tirelessly” for this moment and called on pageant fans and followers to send her off with “confidence and determination”.
CJ was crowned Miss Grand Philippines last Sunday, September 29. While she is flying into Cambodia for some of the Miss Grand International activities, the pageant's coronation night will be held on October 25 in Bangkok.
CJ was crowned at the final show held at the Newport Performing Arts Theater, Newport World Resorts, besting 19 other queens.
Related gallery: The Final 20 Miss Grand Philippines candidates
CJ won the crown thanks to her answer during the question and answer portion of the show, where she was asked if beauty queens should also receive the same monetary rewards as medal-winning athletes. She responded that beauty queens should use the attention to push for their advocacies instead.
“Being able to stand here is already a reward for us. Actually, I think that we actually don't need an incentive or a monetary reward to be able to be seen or to be heard," she said. "Just the very platform like this is already championing the lives of the people believing us, the people who we inspire. I hope all the beauty queens here will continue their legacy to push for their causes, to present themselves around the world."
The Miss Grand Philippines coronation night was hosted by celebrity KC Montero and broadcaster Dyan Castillejo.
This year's Miss Grand Philippines contestants were first announced during a press presentation held last week at the Fashion Interiors by Paul Cornelissen and streamed on the Miss Grand Philippines official YouTube channel.
The Miss Grand Philippines organization staged its final screening for the pageant's applicants more than a month ago, in a “grand spectacle filled with excitement and anticipation” held at the Okada Manila.
CJ Opiaza is succeeding Miss Grand Philippines 2023 Nikki de Moura, who represented the country in the Miss Grand International pageant last year at the Phú Thọ Indoor Stadium in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.
