R'Bonney Gabriel
R'Bonney Gabriel | |
|---|---|
| Born | R'Bonney Nola Gabriel March 20, 1994 Houston, Texas, U.S. |
| Education | University of North Texas (BFA) |
| Occupations |
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| Height | 1.70 m (5 ft 7 in)[1] |
| Beauty pageant titleholder | |
| Title | |
| Hair color | Brown[1] |
| Eye color | Hazel[1] |
| Major competition(s) |
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| Website | https://www.rbonneynola.com/ |
R'Bonney Nola Gabriel (English: /ˈɡeɪbriəl/ GAY-bree-əl; Tagalog: [gɐˈbɾjɛl]; born March 20, 1994), also known as R'Bonney Nola, is an American fashion designer, model, and beauty queen who was crowned Miss Universe 2022 becoming the ninth entrant from the United States to win the title, as well as the oldest entrant to be crowned, surpassing Andrea Meza of Mexico. Gabriel was previously crowned as Miss USA 2022.
Early life and education
R'Bonney Nola Gabriel[2] was born in Houston, Texas to a Filipino father, Remigio Bonzon "R. Bon" Gabriel, and a white American mother, Dana Walker, who married in the Philippines.[3] She grew up in Missouri City and later Friendswood,[4] with three older brothers. Her father was born in the Philippines and is from Manila, later immigrating to Washington state at the age of 25, later receiving a degree in psychology at the University of Houston, opening a car repair shop.[5][6][7] Her mother is from Beaumont, Texas.[8] Gabriel graduated from the University of North Texas with a bachelor's degree in fashion design with a minor in fibers.[9][10] She works as a designer creating eco-friendly clothing, and as a model.[8] She has worked as a sewing instructor at a non-profit.[11]
Pageantry
Her first foray into pageantry was when she joined Miss Kemah USA 2020, where she placed among the Top 5 finalists.[12] She competed at Miss Texas USA 2021 as Miss Harris County and placed as first runner-up to Victoria Hinojosa of McAllen.[13]
Miss USA 2022
She won Miss Texas USA 2022 and went on to represent Texas at Miss USA 2022,[14][15] wherein she was subsequently crowned as Miss USA 2022 becoming the first Miss USA of Filipino descent.[16][17][18]
With her crowning, she became the second titleholder to come from Texas, after Chelsi Smith, to win the Miss Universe title. Smith was Miss Universe in 1995.[19]
Controversy
Following her crowning, allegations emerged that the competition had been rigged for Gabriel to win. It was claimed that Gabriel travelled to Nizuc Resort and Spa in Cancún weeks after Gabriel was crowned Miss Texas USA and was able to shoot promotional material, which the resort's Instagram account posted less than 24 hours after the final competition. Nizuc has been become one of the pageant's sponsors since national director and Miss USA 2008 Crystle Stewart took over at the end of 2020 after Miss USA and Miss Teen USA were separated from the Miss Universe Organization.[20] Both Gabriel and Miss Colorado USA Alexis Glover, were not included in the official Cancún retreat along with the rest of the contestants as Texas and Colorado had not yet crowned at the time of the retreat.[21][22] In an interview with E! News, Gabriel refuted claims that the pageant was rigged, stating "I would never enter any pageant or any competition that I know I would win".[23]
Miss Universe 2022
As Miss USA 2022, she represented the United States at the Miss Universe 2022 pageant. She was crowned Miss Universe 2022 by the outgoing titleholder Harnaaz Sandhu of India, making her the 9th American to win the pageant. Her victory also made her the first representative from the United States to win Miss Universe since Olivia Culpo at Miss Universe 2012.[24][25][26] She is also the first Miss Universe titleholder to be born and raised in the Greater Houston area.[27]
In her capacity as Miss Universe, Gabriel has traveled to various cities within her home country of the United States.[28]
Further reading
References
- ^ a b c "R'Bonney Gabriel". Neil Hamil Agency. Retrieved January 18, 2023.
- ^ "La modelo R'Bonney Nola Gabriel de Estados Unidos se corona como Miss Universo 2023". El Universal (Mexico City) (in Spanish). Mexico City. January 14, 2023. Retrieved January 17, 2023.
- ^ Medel, Meryl (January 16, 2023). "Miss Universe 2022 R'Bonney Gabriel's Filipino Dad Was Sure of Her Win". 8List.ph. Retrieved January 17, 2023.
- ^ Fountain, Ken (January 15, 2023). "Missouri City native R'Bonney Gabriel named Miss Universe". Fort Bend Star. Retrieved January 17, 2023.
- ^ Vergara, Alex (January 15, 2023). "Half-Filipino, half-American from Texas is new Miss Universe". PeopleAsia. Retrieved January 17, 2023.
- ^ Maines, Don (July 7, 2022). "Houston-area woman reflects on historic win as the first Filipina-American crowned Miss Texas USA". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved January 17, 2023.
- ^ "R'Bonney Gabriel is Miss Universe 2022". Pilipino Express. Winnipeg, Manitoba. January 16, 2023. Retrieved January 17, 2023.
- ^ a b Maines, Don (September 23, 2022). "How R'Bonney Gabriel, first Filipina American to win Miss Texas, is readying for shot at Miss USA". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved October 4, 2022.
- ^ "R'Bonney Gabriel, a UNT graduate, crowned as the new Miss Universe". Dallas News. January 15, 2023. Retrieved January 17, 2023.
- ^ "Fashion Design alumna R'Bonney Gabriel wins Miss USA 2022". College of Visual Arts and Design, University of North Texas. Retrieved January 15, 2023.
- ^ Perez, Mariane (January 15, 2023). "R'Bonney Gabriel Wins Miss Universe 2022". vogue.ph. Retrieved January 17, 2023.
- ^ Maines, Don (July 31, 2020). "Clear Falls cheerleader wins Miss Kemah Teen". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved October 4, 2022.
- ^ "Results – Miss – 2021 | Miss Texas USA & Miss Texas Teen USA".
- ^ "For the first time, Texas represented by Asian American women in Miss USA and Miss America pageants". ABC News. Good Morning America. Retrieved October 4, 2022.
- ^ Diaz, John (July 4, 2022). "First Filipina crowned Miss Texas USA". KHOU-TV. Retrieved July 4, 2022.
- ^ "Averie Bishop and R'Bonney Gabriel – win Miss USA, Miss America pageant". ManipurSana. October 4, 2022. Retrieved October 4, 2022.
- ^ "Miss USA 2022 R'Bonney Gabriel Responds to Allegation Her Win Was "Rigged"". E! Online. October 7, 2022. Retrieved January 17, 2023.
- ^ "Fil-Am beauty queen crowned Miss USA 2022". Manila Bulletin. October 4, 2022. Retrieved October 4, 2022.
- ^ Munce, Megan (January 15, 2023). "R'Bonney Gabriel of Friendswood, first Filipina Miss Texas and Miss USA, wins Miss Universe". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved January 19, 2023.
- ^ Chung, Gabrielle (October 6, 2022). "Miss USA 2022 R'Bonney Gabriel Responds to Allegation Her Win Was "Rigged"". E!. Retrieved October 6, 2022.
- ^ Kao, Brooke (October 6, 2022). "Contestants claim Miss USA 2022 was 'rigged': 'We were humiliated'". The New York Post. Retrieved October 6, 2022.
- ^ Pageant world implodes amid claims Miss USA was 'rigged'
- ^ ""Miss USA 2022 R'Bonney Gabriel responds to the allegations"".
- ^ "The moment you've been waiting for… The #71stMISSUNIVERSE Competition is heading to… NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA! 🇺🇸". Instagram.
- ^ Bracamonte, Earl (September 19, 2022). "Miss Universe 2022 reveals date, venue; confirms moms, wives can join". The Philippine Star. Retrieved September 19, 2022.
- ^ "Miss USA 2022 Winner: R'Bonney Gabriel — Miss Texas Wins". TVLine. October 4, 2022. Retrieved October 4, 2022.
- ^ "Miss USA 2022 Winner: R'Bonney Gabriel — Miss Texas Wins". TVLine. October 4, 2022. Retrieved October 4, 2022.
- ^ "R'Bonney Gabriel talks historic win in Miss Universe 2023". Good Morning America. Retrieved January 17, 2023.
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About the page
Presented content of the Wikipedia article was extracted in 2023-01-27 based on https://en.wikipedia.org/?curid=71911761