Iona Gibbs of Bataan has been crowned as the new queen of Mutya ng Pilipinas during the pageant's coronation night on Sunday, December 4 held at the FilOil EcoOil Center in San Juan City.
Gibbs bested 37 other candidates for the 52nd edition of the prestigious national pageant, which was staged for the first time since 2019 due to the COVID pandemic. She succeeded Mutya ng Pilipinas 2019 Klyza Castro.
During the Q&A segment, Gibbs was asked how can a beauty pageant become more relevant to which she answered: "I think that the perfect example of a beauty pageant that is relevant in our current day and age right now is the one I'm standing on this stage for — for Mutya."
"I believe that Mutya, by representing the importance of sustainability and inclusivity, those are all things that in our current world — we need a lot more of. We need a lot more inclusivity in terms of the people. Thank you," she explained.
Other queens were also named during the pageant:
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Mutya ng Pilipinas – World Top Model 2022: Arianna Padrid from Northern California
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Mutya ng Pilipinas – Tourism International 2022: Jeanette Reyes from Camarines Sur
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Mutya ng Pilipinas – Overseas Communities 2022: Jesi Mae Cruz from California
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Mutya ng Pilipinas - Luzon: Shannon Robinson from Makati City
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Mutya ng Pilipinas - Visayas: Megan Deen Campbell from Lapu-Lapu City, Cebu
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Mutya ng Pilipinas - Mindanao: Celyn Bautista from Tarlac City
Reyes will be competing in the 2023 Miss Tourism International pageant, while Padrid will be representing the country in the 2023 World Top Model contest.
Mutya ng Pilipinas organization has yet to announce where will Gibbs compete, but noted that they are looking for an international pageant for her to compete in.
