How to be Miss Universe

Posted by Jayvee at August 21st, 2009

This is from Gloria Diaz as told to Shawn Yao 

PREPARATION
When I joined Bb. Pilipinas, there was no preparation. In fact, I didn’t know that if you won, you’d go to Ms. Universe. You don’t even prepare because during that time, things just seemed to happen. Now, it’s totally different. A lot of it is physical—tallness, long hair, breasts—now a lot is enhanced, they use teeth whitening and wear very tall heels. The contestants during my time, all of them were basically okay. Blonde and blue-eyed or South American, thick hair—Farrah Fawcett style—and then the Asians are totally different.  

They couldn’t tell if I was Filipina or Chinese. Some thought I was South American or Puerto Rican. It was who they thought was most representative of everything, but not necessarily very Asian nor very European. I just knew that everyone wanted to stand with the Asians, but I always wanted to stand with the blondes, and I felt I was different. 

COMPETITION
Right when you get there, you’ll know it’s a competition. You don’t know that you’re going to win but you don’t want to lose. That’s the kind of feeling I had, but that’s innate. My daughters don’t feel that way; they want to blend in. I told them: “If you blend in, you can’t be number one.”  

Our country had never won—we were neophytes. South Americans and Europeans, they knew what a winner had to look like. Filipinos had no idea, and neither did I. We always think that as long as one is beautiful, it is enough. You also had to be taller than the average Filipina. I think you had to be more proportioned; you had the minimum height…the most important thing about me? I was well proportioned. 

STANDING OUT
Also, you’re always together, so you always have to be neater than the rest, pay more attention…be nicer and friendlier. You have to realize that the judges are always around so you can never be in a bad mood, look sloppy or cranky. In the days leading up to the pageant, you don’t meet the judges right away. It’s like being in the Araneta Coliseum, rehearsing for 10 days and there are a lot of people walking around and you just know that there are people who count. You can’t sit across the stage and walk sloppily back and forth. 

DIET?
You’re 18. There is no 18-year old who diets. But I was very sporty when I was a kid. And gravity hasn’t taken its toll. 

DISCRIMINATION
Even then, there’s always some kind of discrimination. In all contests, Asians are always, always dehado. We didn’t stay in nice hotels. Sometimes they don’t invite all of you to those big, sponsored dinners, only half. Then in pictorials they only focus on one or two Asians and majority are blondes, or South Americans. Even now! Donald Trump loves blondes. In fact I was surprised they had one or two blacks thrown in. In all contests there really is discrimination. Even in our country, if one is really dark, maybe unless she’s really pretty, there’s little chance that she’ll win. If she’s fair or light-skinned, there’s a better chance, so you have to find a way to create your own niche.  

MAKING FRIENDS WITH THE OTHER CONTESTANTS?
If they look friendly enough. Otherwise, you mind your own business and smile. You sit with them through dinner and maybe the next day but if they’re not nice you move on. You can make friends with as many of the girls as you want, but if you keep making friends, within ten days you won’t really have any close friends. It doesn’t necessarily have to be an Asian, everybody’s around the same age so everybody has something in common. I was friends with my roommate who was Ms. New Zealand. She was so gorgeous—very tall, with red hair and green eyes. I was so shocked she didn’t make it. We were quite close until the day I won.  

WALKING
It was scary during the contest because there are always steps, and those steps are always plastic and there was always water. Nobody helps you down. You practice the night before, one in heels, then in your bathing suit, but not in your dress. That’s when you’ll realize how scary those stairs are. Many have fallen there, like Miriam Quiambao, but she picked herself up, she was so brave. You walk slowly.  

AFTER WINNING…
…you work. Ms. Universe is really work. You become their possession, their model. From six in the morning you are already told what to do and you do everything they ask you to do. You become a commodity you see? They give you a lot of money, a lot of prizes, which you have to work for.  

BEING MISS UNIVERSE, THERE’S…
A lot of flying. Then from the airport straight to wherever, cut a ribbon here, take photos there, pictorials there, dinners…We did a lot of charity work around America and South America. Once, I was sent to Argentina, there was a charity show there called La Campana de Cristal, I remember so well because I liked it. They granted a terminally sick child there a wish. She wanted to meet Ms. Universe because she wanted to be a beauty queen. So they brought me there.  

In Brazil, and they asked me, “Do you know Pelé?” I didn’t know who Pelé was. (Apparently they had just won the World Cup. It was the biggest thing!) So the next day, in the front-page it said: “Ms. Universe doesn’t know Pelé”, it was as if I didn’t know God. So they arranged for me to meet Pelé, he was like a hero, which was quite nice. He was in hiding because they just won, and the people would swarm over him. They put him somewhere nobody knew where I met him. They took pictures. It was like a gimmick that I finally met him.

DON’T FORGET TO SMILE
You smile all the time, even if you’re ready to fall asleep. The worst part would be the dinners because they’re always with sponsors, owners of big companies and they’re always old people, they sit there and talk to you and take 100 pictures. But it’s your duty—you have no choice.
I even met the presidents of Uruguay, Paraguay and even Nixon…but for an 18 year old, it’s all very boring. You learn to make small talk. Very boring. I’d rather sit at home or in the hotel and read a magazine. (But then) I ask myself if I would rather be sitting in an office, typing a hundred words a minute or be here? And you know it’s going to end. Just the thought that there’s an ending makes you feel good.  

STAYING BEAUTIFUL
You have a lot of help. Clothes come every week and on a certain day you have your hair styled. But you’re 18-years old, you really don’t need that much maintenance, right? They sent me to New York to shop for clothes. Almost every week you go abroad. But it was still very hard work. You cannot just have free clothes, a big allowance, beautiful hotels and just can’t sit back and feel pretty. No, there’s no such thing.

As Ms. Universe sometimes you just wanna die. Mealtimes were erratic. When I crowned the new girl, I was very sick. I had low blood pressure because of the schedule. I came from Japan and by the time I got to America, I was so dizzy, they had to inject me with iron. But it’s good because an 18-year old can take it and it’s a good break-in.  

Anything after Ms. Universe is easy.  
 

[image c/o Wikipilipinas]

This article appears in the August ’09 issue of UNO. If you loved this piece, check out the rest of the issue — we have more. Out on news stands!