Philippines is Mr. Gay World 2019

Filipino crowned Mr. Gay World 2019

ABS-CBN News

May 05 2019 

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MANILA - John Jeffrey "Janjep" Carlos became the second Filipino and Asian to win the Mr. Gay World crown after winning this year's pageant in South Africa. 

Carlos, who hails from Cavite, bested 21 other candidates in the final round of the pageant in Cape Town, South Africa on May 4 (May 5 in Manila). 

He joins fellow Filipino John Fernandez Raspado took the crown in 2017. 

Carlos succeeded Mr. Gay World 2018 Jordan Bruno, an Australian national, for the crown.

Spain's Francisco Alvarado was crowned 1st runner up, followed by Hungary's Oliver Pusztan (2nd runner up), Thailand's Cjayudhom Samibat (3rd runner up) and Belgium's Nick Van Vooren (4th runner up) 

In his introduction video posted on the Mr Gay World 2019 Youtube channel, Carlos said mental health awareness was one of his main advocacies, particularly the fight against depression. 

"Depression is real, and it has caused the tragic loss of lives. Depression is a real illness that can be treated if properly diagnosed," he said.

"With love and understanding of people undergoing depression, this illness can be transformed into wellness." 

Pinoy flutist winner

Pinoy flutist bags awards in Denmark's Carl Nielsen

Sandra Sotelo Aboy, ABS-CBN News

Apr 09 2019 

A Filipino flutist bagged awards at the prestigious Carl Nielsen International Competition held in Odense, Denmark.

Rafael Adobas, 21, won third place in the flute division and best interpretation of a new piece.

"It has been like a roller-coaster mix of emotions. I had only 2 months of preparation after receiving the invitation from the committee. Every performance was a different scenario and with different repertoire - from baroque music, classical, romantic, and contemporary," he told ABS-CBN News.

"I had to learn to be flexible each day of every round. I had to acquire a general overview on everything, and yet be totally focused on every piece that I was playing. I had to be sure of what I wanted to express through my music on the moment of my performance."

Rafael, who was born in Ibiza, Spain, took his passion for music after his father.

His father Margarito, who hails from Southern Leyte, used to be a guitarist.

Music is life for the Adobas family. Rafael’s eldest sister Isabel plays the piano while his younger sisters Mary Grace and Mary Jane plays the violin and saxophone, respectively.

Rafael is currently studying fourth year of Music Performance-Flute at the University of Music and Performing Arts Munich in Germany. 

Out of the almost 500 applications received by Carl Nielsen contest, only 66 young musicians were invited to perform.

In the first round, Rafael won the the best interpretation prize for his passionate delivery of the commissioned piece written for the competition by Austrian composer Thomas Larcher. He took home €2,000.

Rafael played "Life" in the second round, drawing inspiration from the works of Carl Nielsen. His piece is an expression of life from birth to maturity in the company of family, friends, and church.

In the semifinal round, Rafael, together with Odense Symphony Orchestra, played flute concerto in E minor by Franz Benda.

For the finale, Rafael was accompanied by the Copenhagen Philharmonic Orchestra as he played 2 movements from Mozart concerto and Carl Nielsen flute concerto. He won 3rd place and €8,000 cash.

“I dedicate this victory, firstly to my family. They have always been supportive to me from the very first day I held an instrument. And to the church, the Filipino community and everybody who followed and watched me through livestream in this wonderful journey," he said.

"I am proud to be a Filipino."

Pinoy Math wizzards in Hanoi

Pinoy students bag 10 medals at int'l math contest

Donna Magsino

GMA News

April 7, 2019 

Eight Filipino junior and senior high school students brought home the bacon after competing at an international math competition held in Vietnam this month, according to the Mathematics Trainers Guild-Philippines (MTG) on Sunday.

"This is the first international math contest for MTG students this year and we laud them for their achievement," said Dr. Isidro Aguilar, MTG president.

Two of them bagged gold medals: Grade 10 students Bryce Ainsley Sanchez of Grace Christian College and Immanuel Josiah Balete of St. Stephen’s High School.

On the other hand, Grade 8 students Enzo Rafael Chan of Bayanihan Institute-Tarlac and Rickson Caleb Tan of MGC New Life Christian Academy won silver medals.

The bronze medalists were Cassidy Kyler Tan, Grade 8, Davao Christian High School; Noel Stephen Dequito, Grade 8, Xavier School Nuvali; Daryll Carlsten Ko, Grade 10, St. Stephen's High School; and Issam Wang, Grade 10, Manila Science High School.

Two more bronze medals were won by the Filipino students in the team contest.

From April 2 to 6, 2019, around 700 students from China, Hungary, Indonesia, Iran, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Philippines, Poland, Spain, Taiwan, Thailand, United Arab Emirates, and Vietnam participated in the said math competition organized by the Hanoi Department of Education and Training and Hanoi Mathematical Society. — LA, GMA News

Philippines and Japan Infrastructure Partnership

Philippines, Japan line up more 

projects for funding

BusinessWorld

23 November 2018

BW FILE PHOTO

MORE INFRASTRUCTURE projects funded by Japan advanced further in the pipeline after top economic officials from the Philippines and Japan exchanged notes during their meeting late Wednesday, while also identifying new prospects.

Philippine and Japanese officials held the 6^th meeting of the Philippines-Japan High-Level Joint Committee on Infrastructure Development and Economic Cooperation in Manila on Wednesday evening where both sides signed and exchanged notes for a ¥37.905-billion, or $336.24 million, loan for the Pasig-Marikina River Channel Improvement Project Phase IV and another ¥167.199 billion, or $1.413 billion, for the first tranche of the North-South Commuter Railway (NSCR) Extension Project.

The Pasig-Marikina River Channel Improvement Project involves upgrading works along the stretch of the Upper Marikina River — from downstream of the Manggahan Floodway to the Marikina Bridge — as well as construction of the Marikina Control Gate Structure.

The 109-kilometer NSCR Extension Project, meanwhile, will extend the Malolos, Bulacan-Tutuban, Manila railway to Clark International Airport in the north and to Calamba, Laguna in the south. The system will have 58 eight-car trains, seven of which will be airport express trains, and a double-tracked elevated railway that will connect with other lines in Metro Manila.

The exchange of notes is done before the signing of loan agreements.

Manila and Tokyo also signed and exchanged bilateral documents for a Contract of General Consulting Service for the Metro Manila Subway Project Phase I between the Department of Transportation (DoTr) and a consortium of six Japanese firms and OC Global; and the joint venture agreement among the Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA), Japan Overseas Infrastructure Investment Corporation for Transport and Urban Development (JOIN), and Surbana Jurong for the New Clark City.

Both sides committed to open the first three stations of the Metro Manila Subway by May 2022, inclusion of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport line extension in the detailed engineering design of the project and establishment of the Philippine Railway Institute by 2021.

Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III said in a briefing after the meeting that technical working groups will meet regularly to “address challenges for the railway projects.”

“The Japanese side requested the Philippine government to expedite measures such as land acquisition and relocation of utilities.”

Both sides also discussed the possibility of more Japanese ODA financing for “road construction and expansion projects in northern Luzon and Metro Manila, flood management and drainage improvements, and various components of the New Clark City project.”

Loan agreements signed by Japan and the Philippines since the committee met in March last year include: P11 billion for the Mega Manila Subway; P18.76 billion for the Metro Rail Transit-Line 3 (MRT-3) Rehabilitation program, P2.10 billion for the New Bohol Airport Construction and Sustainable Environmental Protection Project Phase 2, and the P4 billion for the Arterial Road Bypass Phase 3 project.

“The Philippines is already at the verge of graduating to the level where we will not qualify anymore for ODA for some countries. Our income per capita is rising, so while we are still here, I think it is best for us to take advantage of the long tenors and the relatively low interest rates because after a few years we will no longer be qualified for that. We will be considered a middle-income country, therefore, we will have to pay higher interest rates. So it makes sense for as to have these projects funded now rather than later,” Mr. Dominguez said.

Aside from Japan, the Philippines has attracted financing support from China, South Korea, Australia, New Zealand, Spain, the United States, the European Union and Canada. — Elijah Joseph C. Tubayan

Miss International 2018 runner-up

Ahtisa Manalo is Ms International 2018 1st runner-up

Robert R. Requintina
Manila Bulletin
10 November 2018

Miss Philippines Ma. Ahtisa Manalo finished second in the Miss International 2018 beauty pageant in Tokyo, Japan Friday afternoon.

This is the first time that the Philippines won first runner-up in the 58-year history of the prestigious beauty contest.

Miss Philippines Athisa Manalo

Mariem Velazco of Venezuela was crowned Miss International 2018. Other winners were South Africa, 2nd runner-up; Romania, 3rd runner-up; and Colombia,4th runner-up.

In her speech, Manalo said: “If I will be lucky enough to be chosen as Miss International 2018, I will continue to be the voice of the youth and let them know that nothing is impossible with hard work and determination.”

Earlier, Filipino pageant fans went wild as soon as Manalo made it to the Top 15 of the contest, making the Miss International pageant one of the trending topics on social media on Friday afternoon.

Supporters of the 21-year-old beauty queen also cheered when Manalo confidently paraded in her national costume, swimsuit, and evening gown.

Other delegates who made it to the Top 15 were Romania, Mexico, Ecuador, Thailand, Australia, Paraguay, Japan, Indonesia, Ukraine, Spain and Madagascar.

From 15, Manalo made the cut to the Top 8 along with Japan, Romania, Ecuador, Colombia, Spain, South Africa, and Venezuela.

A total of 77 candidates competed in this year’s Miss International pageant.

The Philippines already won six times in the beauty tilt. Other Filipina winners were Gemma Cruz (1964), Aurora Pijuan (1970), Melanie Marquez (1979), Precious Lara Quigaman (2005), Bea Rose Santiago (2013) and Kylie Verzosa (2016).

A big fan of crime-busting television series “Charlie’s Angels,” Manalo says she wanted to become a police officer when she was young but her parents did not approve of it.

Instead, she earned a degree in accountancy from the Manuel S. Enverga University in Candelaria, Quezon. In 2016, she was crowned Binibining Niyogyugan.

Manalo said her favorite beauty queen is 2005 Miss International Precious Lara Quigaman.

Filipino Global Brands

12 Filipino brands win at 2018 World Branding Awards


Associated Press
Business Mirror
02 November 2018

LONDON—The prestigious World Branding Awards, the ultimate global brand-recognition accolade, saw 270 brands from 33 countries named “Brand of the Year” in a glittering ceremony held at the State Apartments of Kensington Palace on October 31.

Beijing Tong Ren Tang, BMW, Cartier, Club Med, JinkoSolar, Johnnie Walker, Lego, L’Oréal, Louis Vuitton, Nescafé, Rolex, Samsung, Schwarzkopf and Yakult were announced as global winners of this edition of the awards.

Regional winners included Ajinomoto, Uniqlo (Japan); Giordano, Optical 88, Sasa, Shangri–La (Hong Kong); Indomie (Indonesia); LuLu; RAK Ceramics (United Arab Emirates); MTN (South Africa); and Zara (Spain).

National tier winners from the Philippines were Ayala Land (Property Developer), BENCH (Fashion Brand), Condura (Electrical Appliances–Refrigerators), Globe (Telecommunications–Mobile), Jollibee (Quick Service Restaurants), Lucky Me! (Noodles), Meralco (Power/Energy), National Book Store (Retailer–Bookstores), Petron (Petrol/Gas Stations), San Miguel (Beer), SM Cinemas (Entertainment– Cinemas), and Tanduay (Alcoholic Beverages–Spirits).

Winners are uniquely judged through three streams: brand valuation, consumer market research, and public online voting. Seventy percent of the scoring process comes from consumer votes. There can only be one winner in each category per country.

“The awards celebrates the achievements of some of the greatest brands around the globe. With an average of just six winners per country, it is truly a great achievement to be a winner of these awards,” said Richard Rowles, chairman of the World Branding Forum.

This year the awards were split into two award ceremonies, with brands from the Americas and the Caribbean awarded in a separate New York event earlier in July. Over 230,000 consumers from around the world participated in the voting process.

“More than 4,500 brands from 57 countries were nominated this year, with 351 brands from 49 countries declared as winners—81 brands from 16 countries were awarded in New York; and 270 winners from 33 countries awarded in London. Not every country was awarded, as a few did not receive enough votes to qualify,” said Peter Pek, chief executive of the Forum.

Now in its fifth year, the awards is organized by the World Branding Forum, a global nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing branding standards. It organizes and sponsors a range of educational programs. The Forum also publishes branding news on its web site that reaches a global audience of over 23.69 million.

The event was hosted by David Croft from Sky Sports.