From spiking and tossing to high-heels and make-up is a huge transition for Michelle Gumabao as she tries her luck into the world of the beauty pageant as one of the candidates of Binibining Pilipinas (Miss Philippines) 2018.
Getting into a different field is not an easy thing for the Former Pinoy Big Brother housemate and volleyball player Michelle Gumabao, the aspiring Miss Universe admitted that she is just a newbie in the world of beauty pageants but considers it as an “opportunity” to grow.
“I consider my inexperience actually as an opportunity for me, it’s not a setback because I am more open to people who want to teach me, who want to coach me, who want to make me better than who I was when I first started training when I first entered Aces & Queens it was really something totally new for me.”
Gumabao said that her life has been revolving around sports since she was in sixth grade but she strives to know more about the nature of the pageant world.
She shared that watching international beauty pageants helped her pick up tons of knowledge and techniques on how to be a beauty queen.
“I am admitting that I am new to the pageant world I am admitting my inexperience but I have watched beauty pageants as did you guys,” Gumabao said in her introduction video for Binibining Pilipinas.
The 25-year-old volleyball player also shared how clueless she was when she started her training.
“I didn’t know anything, I was clueless, how to walk, stand, sit and how to answer questions because it’s totally different from how you do in your normal life and I’m very thankful they saw me as a hardworking and very determined individual and student and I was very lucky that they took me under their wing, ” Gumabao said in the video.
Gumabao added that she was never considered a naturally talented volleyball player but with hard work and determination, she was given the opportunity to play for the country and be considered a professional player.
“The attributes of being a beauty queen may not have come easy and as natural as others have experienced, but I am a hard worker, a fast learner, and a dedicated candidate. And just like how I devoted my life to win gold medals and championships, I plan to do the same for a crown,” she said in an Instagram post.
Gumabao was a co-captain of the De La Salle University women’s volleyball team, the Lady Spikers, in 2012 until 2013. She is the camp director of the Alaska Volleyball Powercamp.