REIGNING Miss International Queen Philippines Fuschia Anne Ravena raised questions with her absence in the preliminary competition of this year’s competition, and she took to Instagram to explain her decision.

Miss International Queen is an international pageant open to all transwomen. This is the second staging of the pageant in the country under an exclusive franchise granted to Michelle Montecarlo, the pageant’s alumna.

‘Personal decision’

According to Ravena, she herself decided not to attend the preliminary events. 

“It was my personal decision to not attend the preliminary competition because I believe this year’s batch of hopefuls deserves to have their moment,” Ravena said in her post.

It has been a tradition in all pageants that all reigning queens have their separate exposure during preliminary competition. But Ravena went missing during the prelims night. 

According to Ravena, she was “simply enjoying the live stream in the comfort of my home” during the activity.

She also said that Montecarlo, the pageant’s national director, had discussed with her the plans for the pageant. These included her participation in the preliminary round as well as her “involvement” in the pageant.

But she later opted not to be at the preliminary events. 

It’s their time to shine

She said the preliminary competition is the “most important part” of the competition since it’s where the girls get to present themselves to the public eye for the first time “after all the hard work and dedication leading to that night.”

“As a beauty queen who went through all of these, I know how vital this moment is, and as your Miss International Queen 2022, I don’t wanna take that moment away from them. I had my time; now it’s theirs. If there’s only a moment I’d request to cherish, it is when I take my final bow as your Miss International Queen Philippines on the 11th,” she said.

Preliminary competition

On Sunday, March 5, the Miss International Queen Philippines Organization kicked off its preliminary competition at the Palacio Cristal Del Aquila in Tagaytay City. 

Some 25 women are vying for the crown in a bid to achieve a back-to-back triumph for the Philippines in the Miss International Queen 2023 pageant in Thailand.

Among the competition’s frontrunners are Anne Patricia Lorenzo and Lars Pacheco, both second-time joiners of the said pageant.

Ravena was crowned the winner during the Miss International Queen 2022 in Pattaya, Thailand. She is the third crown holder from the Philippines after Trixie Maristela, who won the title in 2015, and Kevin Balot, who clinched the first-ever Miss International Queen crown in 2012.