With Miss Universe Philippines separating from Binibining Pilipinas in 2019, the first edition of Miss Universe Philippines i.e. Miss Universe Philippines 2020 will be hosted on 3rd May 2020 in Mall of Asia Arena, Bay City, Pasay, Metro Manila. Miss Universe Philippines 2019 Gazini Ganados will crown her successor by the end of the event finale.
Apriel Smith, one of the delegates at the competition, is 24-years-old and stands 175 cm tall with a degree in Tourism Management from the University of San Carlos in Cebu City. She currently works as a print ad and ramp model. Even though, she hasn’t been in much limelight yet but she is aware about where to make an appearance and where to step back. Being an underdog, however, is definitely working in her favor and she might be the one to watch out for at the national contest this year.
Apriel is not new to the pageantry as she joined Binibining Pilipinas in 2016 and ended up being placed at Top 15. Before Binibining Pilipinas, Apriel was crowned Sinulog Festival Queen in 2012, a Reyna ng Aliwan in 2017 where she was placed as the 1st runner-up and lastly, she was crowned the very first Binibining Cebu titleholder in 2017. The diva is well experienced in the field of pageantry as other than beauty pageants, Apriel has worked for various designers and photographers to earn some experience.
For someone like Apriel who is a veteran or well-experienced in the field of pageantry, Miss Universe Philippines 2020 is still a challenge that surprises her with every activity they do. She strongly believes that beauty pageants help to empower women and inspire them to embrace their natural beauty which she admires. She also admits to have been bullied before while she was just starting out and beauty pageants have helped her gain her lost confidence and make her realize how beautiful and strong, she is.
Asking about her expectations from Miss Universe Philippines 2020, April mentioned that she is excited to gain more sister and group or friends. She is learning better and successful ways to preach about their advocacies in order to reach out to more people. She is very positive about knowing the other delegates and their advocacies as she is always up for listening and understanding someone else’s point of view.
Apriel is a sports person and her advocacy is to help the youth to have a bright future ahead of them that is why her advocacy is to bring sports to them as their hobby for them to stay away from drugs. She has worked very hard to be at this place and has performed exceedingly well in the glam shoot, runway challenge and portrait shot of Miss Universe Philippines 2020.
The diva is very active on social media and makes sure she engages with her fans and puts out meaningful message on her account. Recently she posted about women empowerment on Women’s Day and Covid-19 precautions in a very interesting way. She knows how to make her standing in a group of people and that is what makes her one of the strongest contenders for the crown.
She has good communication skills too and a remarkably charming smile. She has a great personality; very strong values and the most important part is the understanding of the beauty pageant world. Apriel shares, “Beauty pageants are enlightening, and it changes how a woman sees the world. The different pageants I have been part of taught me how to be mature and selfless, and to always rise to the challenge.”
Apriel hopes her journey to the crown is one that will inspire many other young women. To them, she says, “Never give up on your dreams, even when nobody else believes they can come true.” With her confidence, experience and personality, we surely think she is a potential winner of the title of Miss Universe Philippines 2020.