Miss Supranational Philippines first runner-up Pauline Amelinckx/ARMIN P. ADINA
MANILA, Philippines — Miss Supranational Philippines’ Pauline Amelinckx has asked her supporters and fans to respect and “find peace” in the decision of judges of the pageant to bestow the coveted crown on Andrea Aguilera of Ecuador.
Many Filipinos took to social media to express their disappointment with the results of the 2023 edition of the Poland-based pageant which proclaimed Amelinckx as first runner-up to Aguilera despite the Filipino queen’s impressive performance in the competition, especially in the final round of questioning.
“I can only hope that you do find peace with it and find pride in this journey that we collectively share together,” Amelinckx appealed to her followers when she spoke to a group of media scribes and online content creators who welcomed her back to the country when she arrived at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport’s Terminal 3 in Pasay City past midnight on July 26.
“I feel I’m not gonna tell you how you should feel or how you should manage your emotions and feelings when it comes to this. But I do want you to know that I myself, I’m happy. And I am so, so proud of how far we were able to make it,” added the Belgian-Filipino host and model from Bohol who finished second in the competition held in Poland on July 14 (July in Manila).
She said Aguilera is a worthy queen, and she may have never made it far in the competition if not for the newly-crowned queen’s help. “Miss Ecuador is such a fine person. And like I said in a post before, she actually helped me with my breathing exercises when I wasn’t really feeling well,” Amelinckx shared.
During the final moments of the competition, when she and Aguilera were holding hands before the final announcement was made, Amelinckx said, “we were both telling each other how deserving we were to be where we were in that moment. And I also personally once again thanked her. I told her if it wasn’t for you, I might not have been here in the Top Two with you. So I thanked her for that.”
Amelinckx also wished Ecuador’s first Miss Supranational winner all the best. “I’m happy that she was able to bring that much honor also to her country, and I know with her tenacity, and with her dedication, too, that she would bring pride to the entire world, because she’s representing all of us now,” she said.
READ: Ecuador’s Andrea Aguilera is Miss Supranational 2023; PH’s Pauline Amelinckx is 1st runner-up
She also said up to the day of the final competition, she had not decided which gown to wear. “I had four different gowns in my suitcase going to the event because I wasn’t even sure. And since I’m representing the Philippines, I wanna be able to have my four options there with me. But now I will ask my mentors close to me what their opinion is. So that’s where we decided, and with 100 percent certainty, let’s go for the black one from Larry Espinosa,” Amelinckx said.
The Filipino queen also said she was consistently praying all throughout the competition. “The way I pray, it’s like, kind of specific. Every segment I always went back to a little prayer. ‘Oh my God, make my performance, make myself worthy enough for the next segment. Lord, please allow me to just hold the mic. I want my message to go across.’ And then I was able to make it,” Amelinckx shared
And now that the competition has concluded, she said she will miss her fellow delegates, with whom she spent three weeks in Poland together. “I think we all got really, really clingy at some point. We always had breakfast together, had snacks together when we’re not supposed to have snacks,” she said.
“We were really able to create a very special bond and all of us got so emotional on the last day and we all made a little promise to each other that whenever we would be in each other’s respective countries that we would message and that we would meet up. And that’s a promise that I hope to keep also,” Amelicnkx continued.
But she already did a bit of traveling before flying home, Amelinckx said.
“We went to Budapest. It was beautiful. It was breathtaking. After Budapest, we went to the Czech Republic, in Prague, and then we met up with [Miss Universe Philippines National Director Shamcey Supsup]. Also, we had a little Filipino dinner in the Airbnb that we stayed at. [Mentor and ‘pageant mom’ Mikee Andrei] made chicken adobo. And then after that we went to Paris, and I went back to the Philippines,” she shared.
Amelinckx said she is not aware yet of any plans from the Bohol provincial government about a homecoming celebration in her home province. She also said the Miss Supranational pageant did not give any further instructions on how she should go about her reign as first runner-up, but she said she would love to return to Poland for pageant-related work if the organization asks her. EDV