Mr. World Philippines 2018 awarded to JB Saliba of Olongapo

FILE: A former athlete playing for the UP Maroons Baseball Team, he is currently an actor and his first movie will be released very soon. (Photo: @MsWorldPhil/Instagram)

Twenty-five-year-old University of the Philippines (UP) Fighting Maroon Jody “JB” Saliba was all smiles after getting the top title in this year’s Mr. World Philippines. The finals of the event were held at the Newport Performing Arts Theater, Resorts World Manila in Pasay last Wednesday.

Besides snagging the Mr. World Philippines title, Candidate #14 JB also received numerous special awards, namely: Best Skin by Cathy Valencia Advanced Skin Clinic, Mr. Blue Water Day Spa, Mr. TechnoMarine, and Mr. Bench Body.

JB takes to his social media account to express his gratitude to his supporters telling them, “I am grateful for all the trust, support and love that you all have given to me.” During Mr. World Philippines 2018, JB represented Olongapo City, where he was born and bred. He gives them a shoutout in his post, stating in mix of English and Filipino, “I was so happy to see that so many people from Olongapo got to come and watch and show their full force support.” In JB’s words about the entire experience, he said, “Everything escalated too quickly and I am still overwhelmed since this still feels surreal.”

The competitive baseball player will be representing the Philippines at the international Mr. World 2018 competition in Manila within January 2019.

Among the other winners also included Mr. Supranational Philippines 2018 Marco Poli, Mr. Eco Philippines 2018 Robin Hanrath, Mr. Multinational Philippines 2018 Denver Hernandez, First Runner-up Ameen Sardouk, and Second Runner-Up Wilfred Placencia.

Mr. World Philippines 2018 encountered numerous scheduling issues throughout its duration. Initially, it was scheduled for September 25 until disruptions from Typhoon Ompong, then, rumors spread that it would be on the same night of Miss World Philippines 2018 on October 7. Finally, organizers announced the event to be on the night of October 23 telecasted on GMA-7.