...the Miss World 2013

Megan Young crowned Miss World

Associated Press, INQUIRER.net

Saturday, September 28th, 2013

PHILIPPINES’ PRIDE Newly crowned Miss World Megan Young of Philippines, center, waves, after winning the Miss World contest, in Nusa Dua, Bali, Indonesia, Saturday, Sept. 28, 2013. Young beat candidates in 126 countries and became the first Filipina to win the title in the pageant’s 63-year history. AP

BALI, Indonesia—Miss Philippines, Megan Young, was crowned Miss World in a glittering finale on the Indonesian resort island of Bali on Saturday.

 

“I promise to be the best Miss World ever,” Young, 23, said after winning the 63rd annual event, as a large number of Filipino fans who traveled with her celebrated by jumping and waving the country’s flag.

 

Young bested 126 beauty queens from around the world to become the first Filipina to win the coveted title in a contest broadcast to more than 180 countries worldwide.

 

Indonesia’s government announced three weeks ago that the final would be moved from the outskirts of the capital, Jakarta, and instead held on the Hindu-dominated resort island of Bali, where earlier rounds were taking place.

AND THE NEW MISS WORLD IS . . . Miss Philippines Megan Young, right, reacts after winning the Miss World pageant final. AP

But despite threats from the Islamic Defenders Front to disrupt the pageant, police said no rallies were staged Saturday. The group has demonstrated for weeks, calling for the government to cancel the pageant because members say it shows too much skin and goes against Islamic teachings.

 

The 127 contestants vying for the crown were introduced Saturday wearing evening gowns shimmering in sequins, many of them with plunging necklines and slits up the leg. Four candidates dropped out earlier, mainly due to illnesses, said Syafril Nasution, one of the local organizers.

 

Young, who took the crown from Wenxia Yu of China, the 2012 winner, was born in the United States. When she was 10 she moved to the Philippines, where she has appeared in films and as a television host.

 

She thanked the judges for choosing her and pledged to “just be myself in everything I do, to share what I know and to educate people.”

 

Before her, no Filipina had won the prestigious crown in the 63-year-old history of the London-based pageant.

 

Miss France, Marine Lorphelin, 20, took second place, while Miss Ghana, Carranzar Naa Okailey Shooter, 22, came in third.

 

Miss World organizers had earlier agreed to cut bikinis from the swimsuit competition, replacing them with more conservative sarongs. But pressure continued to mount, and more mainstream groups joined in and called for the show to be banned. With Agence France-Presse

 

...the Gilas world ranking

Thanks to FIBA Asia run, PH climbs 11 spots in world rankings

 

By Chris Lagunzad

Yahoo PH Sports

28 September 2013

Yahoo PH Sports - Gilas Pilipinas at the awarding ceremonies of the 27th FIBA Asia Championship held August 11, 2013 at the Mall of Asia Arena. (Czeasar Dancel/NPPA Images)

 

 

Buoyed by its magical run in the 27th FIBA Asia Championship last month, the Philippines made a big leap in the world rankings, moving up 11 rungs higher to the 34th spot with an accumulated 22.8 points.

The Nationals, as hosts, finished fighting runners-up to powerhouse Iran in the Manila cage joust and that proved enough to earn the points to leapfrog the likes of continental rivals Japan (35th with 22.6 points), Qatar (42nd with 17.3) and Chinese Taipei (44th with 15.9).

Collectively known as Gilas Pilipinas, the Nationals also emerged as one of the most improved squads in the world rankings and is now ranked sixth-best overall in Asia behind China (12th with 188.9 points), Iran (20th with 94.2), Lebanon (29th with 35.4), Jordan (30th with 33.8), and South Korea (31st with 30.6).

More than elation, national team coach Chot Reyes admitted Friday that the Nationals’ latest feat also serve as an added motivation as they gear up for future international tournaments, including next year’s FIBA Basketball World Cup in Spain.

The United States, the reigning Olympic champion, kept its firm hold on the top spot with 940 points followed by European titan Spain with 885. Argentina was a distant third with 490 while Lithuania and Greece traded places in fourth and fifth spots with 432 and 376 points, respectively.

The rankings are based on the performance of each country in three major tournaments that includes the Olympics, the FIBA World Cup (then known as the FIBA World Championship) and the continental championships. FIBA then makes calculations from those tourneys inside two Olympic cycles.

 

 

...the great expectation from Moody's

Barclays: PHL at new growth path, to snag Moody's investment grade before year-end

By SIEGFRID O. ALEGADO,

GMA News

September 27, 2013

 

 

 

The Philippines has entered a higher growth trajectory underpinned by strong domestic demand and increasing investments, British financial giant Barclays said, forecasting that Manila will finally snag an investment grade rating from Moody's Investors Service this year.

“We believe the Philippines remain on a new growth trajectory,” Barclays said in its latest Emerging Markets Quarterly sent to reporters on Friday.

It said the Philippine economy – which grew at the fastest rate in Southeast Asia in the second quarter – will still enjoy robust domestic demand on the back of strong remittance flow as well as government and private sector investments.

For the fourth time this year, Barclays revised its 2013 forecast for Philippines gross domestic product (GDP) growth to 7.2 percent, 40 basis points higher than the previous. It, however, kept its 2014 outlook at 6.5 percent given a high base.

The country's healthy external position and strong macroenonomic policy will allow it to weather global uncertainties and thus snag the investment grade rating from Moody's, the last among three major global debt-watchers to lift the Philippines from junk status.

“On ratings, we continue to expect Moody's to upgrade the sovereign to investment grade before year-end,” the report read.

The country received an investment grade rating from Fitch Ratings and Standard & Poor’s, while Japan Credit Rating Agency hiked the Philippine sovereign rating to two notches above investment grade.

Patrick Ella, economist at listed Security Bank Corporation, affirmed Barclays' views, saying that the Philippines' “new growth path” is due to a “strong demographic dividend” – a young, well-educated labor force fueling demand for consumer goods and underpinning the construction boom.

“A 7 to 8 percent growth should be the norm going forward,” he said by phone.

Ella also sees Moody's giving the coveted investment grade rating this year based on “good fundamentals and improved governance.”

The Philippines has a currency account surplus worth 3.7 percent of its GDP, foreign reserves at $83 billion, and declining external debt recorded at $59 billion as of March.

Although things “will not be easy,” Barclays is also of the view that government reforms will not lose steam. This, the bank said, will attract more investments.

It cited initiatives to address corruption, securing peace in Mindanao, and reforming the mining sector.

Barclays also noted government focus to pass a legislation rationalizing tax perks given to businesses, which is seen to recoup forgone revenues estimated at 1.0 to 1.5 percent of GDP.

The bank forecasts Philippine inflation hitting 2.8 percent in 2013, below the Bangko Sentral's 3 to 5 percent target, thus seeing policy settings unchanged for the rest of 2013.

“With a favorable growth-inflation trade-off, we expect the BSP to keep policy rate unchanged,” the report read, noting that a 25 basis points policy rate hike is seen only in the third quarter of 2014.

The Philippine Monetary Board kept the overnight borrowing rate at 3.5 percent and overnight lending at 5.5 percent since October last year, supporting growth.

Philippine monetary authorities will discuss policy anew on October 24. — KBK, GMA News

 

 

...the Miss World Top Model

Megan Young is Miss World's Top Model

            

philstar.com

September 27, 2013

 

 

Image from Miss World's website, www.missworld.com

 

MANILA, Philippines - The Philippines' bet Megan Young won Miss World 2013's Top Model contest, the pageant's website reported Friday.

Young bested nine bets from South Sudan, England, USA, Cyprus, Italy, France, Brazil, Cameroon and Ukraine, who were judged through a fashion show that highlighted Indonesian designers.

Following the Filipina in the contest is United States' Olivia Jordan. Ranked third was Marine Lorphelin of France, ranked fourth was Ukraine's Anna Zaiachkivska and Brazil's Sancler Frantz ranked fifth.

Young also won in the other contests, ranking 5th in Beach Fashion and fourth in Multimedia.

As of Wednesday, Young also ranked second in the Miss World's The People's Champion contest, which is decided through the people's vote via the Miss World App available in iStore and Google Play.

The 23-year-old Young is an actress and television host in the Philippines.

 

...the UN body chief

Phl heads UN body on status of women

              

By Pia Lee-Brago

The Philippine Star

September 23, 2013

 

 

MANILA, Philippines - The Philippines has assumed chairmanship of the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women.

Philippine Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the UN Libran Cabactulan has assumed the chairmanship of the Bureau for the 58th Session of the Commission on the Status of Women, a move that is seen as the international community’s recognition of the Philippines’ leadership.

The Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) is the principal global policy-making body dedicated exclusively to gender equality and advancement of women. Every year, representatives of member states gather at UN headquarters in New York to evaluate progress on gender equality, identify challenges, set global standards and formulate concrete policies to promote gender equality and women's empowerment worldwide.

In a statement, Cabactulan said that the Philippines is thankful for the “confidence placed by the international community” in an important UN body.

“The Philippines is honored by this position of leadership which recognizes the country’s long-lasting and continuing commitment to gender equality and the advancement of women. Under the Philippines’ leadership, we will continue to build on the Commission’s accomplishments and help ensure that current efforts contribute to a future of gender equality and empowerment of women,” Cabactulan said.

The priority theme for the 58th session of the CSW, which will take place in March 2014, is “Challenges and Achievements in the Implementation of the Millennium Development Goals for Women and Girls.”

Other members of the bureau for the 58th CSW session include Christine Loew (Switzerland), representing the Western European and other states group; Neli Shiolashvili (Georgia), representing the Eastern European states; Mohamed Elbahi (Sudan), representing the African states, and Carlos Garcia (El Salvador), representing the Latin American and Caribbean states.

The Philippines served as vice chair representing the Asia Pacific group during the 56th and 57th sessions of CSW.

It facilitated the agreed conclusions of the 57th session of CSW and played an instrumental role in breaking an impasse from 2003, when states were unable to reach common ground on ending violence against women and girls.

A record 146 UN member and observer states and 11 groups of states addressed the meeting.
Nearly 3,000 representatives of nongovernment organizations attended.

Media coverage in more than 50 countries was unprecedented, including a prominent editorial in The New York Times.

 

...the 7000 reasons to visit PH

7,000 reasons why Americans should travel to PH

 

By Henni Espinosa,

ABS-CBN North America Bureau

 09/23/2013

 

 

SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. – It’s a country of more than 7,000 islands. And the Philippine government said — that’s more than enough reason for people from other parts of the world to visit the Philippines.

“It’s a unique destination. There’s things in the Philippines you can’t find anywhere else and people want to experience that,” said Dave Riopel, an American who wants to travel to the “Pearl of the Orient” for the first time.

The Philippine Department of Tourism is expecting to have a record 10 million international tourists in 2016. The Aquino government has set aside $1.3 billion to build tourism infrastructure, such as roads that lead to various tourist spots.

To encourage more tourists to come, the Philippines is also pushing to ease visa regulation.

For the first seven months of 2013, foreign tourist arrivals reached 2.8 million, an 11% increased compared to a year ago.

To help boost Philippine tourism in America, Resorts World Manila introduced their premier destination to the community through the “Thrill the World” roadshow, recently held at Fort McKinley restaurant in South San Francisco, California.

Resorts World Manila, which opened in 2009, is only 5 minutes away from the airport and from the business district.

“Everything is under one roof. We offer gaming here for those who want to go to a casino. We also offer entertainment through our musical theatre. We have shopping outlets. We also have three different hotels to cater to every need. We have a 6-star hotel, a mid-class hotel and a budget hotel,” said Martin Paz, VP for Marketing of Resorts World Manila.

Paz describes their visitors’ experience as being on a cruise ship — but on land.

Philippine officials said having world-class destinations like Resorts World Manila only strengthens the Philippines’ position as the place to be — all year round.

What makes it even more fun to travel to the Philippines — is the people’s hospitality.

“It’s the Filipino people. We are blessed with natural resources. But we have a fun-loving people that will always make their guests number one,” Jaime Ascalon, Philippine Deputy Consul General in San Francisco, said.

 

...the 2013 World Cup of Pool Champions

Filipinos Corteza and Orcollo capture World Cup of Pool crown

By Bob Guerrero

• Posts

By Bob Guerrero

The Passionate Fan

23 September 2013

 

Image courtesy JP Parmentier and Matchroom Sport.

It was messy. It was ugly. It was nerve-racking. And for Pinoy fans from all around the world, it was also beautiful.

The Philippine pair of Dennis Orcollo and Lee Vann Corteza etched their names in Pool history by emerging 10-8 winners over Holland in a sloppy but thrilling final on Sunday at the 888.com World Cup of Pool in London, England. It's the third title for the Philippines in the eight editions of the team 9 Ball event. Efren Reyes and Francisco Bustamante lifted the cup in 2006 and 2009.
 
The final rack was a tense affair for both the Pinoys and the Dutch team of Niels Feijen and Nick van den Berg.

Leading 9-8, Dennis Orcollo broke dry, and it seemed that the Dutch could force a final-rack decider. But van den Berg muffed a four ball down the rail, ceding the table to the Philippines.

Orcollo played poor position in sinking the seven ball, leaving a difficult thin cut on the eight for Corteza, whose form had been shaky all throughout the final.

But the Davaoeño displayed no nerves at all in draining the shot and leaving his partner with shape on the nine ball. Orcollo knocked it in, sending the dozens of Filipinos at York Hall into rapture.

The last eight ball was fitting redemption for Corteza, who made some uncharacteristic errors in the roller-coaster title match.

"The fans here are why we won" said Orcollo afterwards."There was a lot of pressure and things became very difficult but the Filipino community in London who supported us throughout really helped us through."

The Philippines sprinted to an early 2-0 lead before Holland steadied the ship to lead 3-2. Then the Philippines reeled off five consecutive racks to gain a stranglehold on the match at 7-3, with Holland always finding awkward situations on the table and making mistakes in crucial moments.

Then Lee Vann missed a two ball in rack eleven to permit the Europeans to peg one rack back. In the next rack Corteza again stumbled, completely whiffing a tough but doable jump shot on the eight ball. That allowed the Dutch to pull to within two, 5-7.

Feijen and van den Berg then broke-and-ran out the next two racks to level at 7-7. A weak safety by Orcollo in rack fifteen gave the Dutch yet another opening which they seized for 8-7.

In rack 16 Feijen rattled an awkward but makeable 8 ball to allow the Pinoys first access to the hill at 9-8. The former 14.1 world champ needed to put follow on the long shot to avoid scratching and to get position on the nine, which probably caused him to miss.

That set up the memorable final rack that propelled Corteza and Orcollo into the pantheon of World Cup of Pool champions.

The Philippines reached the final thanks to a superb 9-7 semifinal win against Chinese Taipei stars Chang Jung Lin and Ko Pin Yi. Like the final, the Philippines put up a big lead, 7-2, before the Formosans found their groove and reeled off five racks in a row, the last four break-and-run-outs, to knot the match at 7-7.

Orcollo and Corteza then took the last two racks to secure a finals berth.

Holland booked their finals ticket with a 9-4 win over defending champs Finland. Mika Immonen and Petri Makkonen will be pleased that they won eight straight matches in this event dating from last year.

The Philippine duo will split the US$60,000 top prize while the Dutch settle for US$30,000. The victory should help erase the memory of Orcollo's last final appearance in the WCOP, in 2010, when he and Roberto Gomez were upset by China's Li He Wen and Fu Jian Bo 10-5 in Manila.

This year the Philippines bounced Croatia 7-4 in the first round, then defeated Singapore 7-3 before downing Hungary 9-1 in the quarterfinals.

The win extends a terrific year for both Pinoys. Orcollo recently won the US Open One Pocket championship while Corteza triumphed in the 2013 China Open.