When Perak-born lass Natalie Chiew was asked about pageant winners achieving stardom, she gave an eloquent response that would lead her to the Miss Malaysia Global Beauty Queen 2008 crown.In the national finals held at the Bayview Georgetown Hotel in Penang recently, the 21-year-old mass communications student, despite having a sore throat, held off the challenge of 13 other hopefuls with her elegant walk and confidence.
In the question and answer section, Chiew cited Datuk Michelle Yeoh, a former Miss Malaysia who eventually landed roles in major Hollywood movies, including that of a Bond girl. Her answer drew applause from the packed audience.
The pageant was divided into four rounds, evening wear, swim wear, casual wear and body sculpting wear. The top eight were then chosen for a Q & A session.
No stranger to pageants having emerged runner-up in the Miss Tourism Queen Malacca contest earlier this year, the 170-cm tall Chiew won the right to represent Perak after a series of preliminaries in her home state.
“I’m really surprised. It was hard talking with a sore throat, so I just tried my best.
“The experience I gained in previous pageants stood me in good stead, as I knew the proper way to present myself.
“Being a mass communications student also helps, as we do presentations which improve our confidence in public speaking,” said an overjoyed Chiew.
Surprisingly, Chiew also lists being a policewoman as one of her career choices.
“I would like to do my part to uphold justice and protect this beautiful country of mine,” she explained.
An eager traveller, she will represent the nation at the international final to be held in Xiangshan, China, from Sept 7 to Sept 28.
“I promise to do my best,” Chiew added.
Besides receiving a tiara from 2007 winner Moo Yan Yee, she took home RM3,000 in cash and various prizes from sponsors. She also won two subsidiary titles, Miss Global Charm-ing Style Flash and Miss Congeniality Perut Rumah.
Event organising chairman Alan Kok believes Chiew has what it takes to match Moo who secured a top 15 finish in last year’s international final.
In second place was local crowd favourite Sandra Yap, an 18-year-old pre-university student. Despite narrowly missing out on the big prize, she claimed four subsidiary titles, Miss Global Popularity Island Plaza, Miss Emerald Capital, Miss Global Personality Feeling and Miss Global Best Catwalk RG Creation.
“My mother and friends encouraged me to join. It was a very fun experience,” Yap said, adding that she plans to dabble in modelling, but only after completing her studies. She took home RM1,000.
Stephanie Tan, 21, of Kedah complemented her third place finish with the Miss Global Amusement title and took home RM500.
The 2008 Miss Malaysia Global Beauty Queen contest was presented by Emerald Capital Group and organised by Catvogue Events Production.
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