Tovic Salvador

Dia Mate thankful for 'unexpected' Reina Hispanoamericana victory

Article (news)

Dyan Castillejo

ABS-CBN News

<div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:950px"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/173916956319420250210 (4).jpg" style="width:950px" class="fr-fic fr-dib"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">Reina Hispanoamericana 2025 Dia Mate. <em>Mate/Instagram </em></span></span></span></div><p>After six months of preparation, Dia Mate is now an international beauty queen.</p><p>The 22-year old singer-songwriter was crowned Reina Hispanoamericana 2025, taking home the Philippines&#x27; second title after Winwyn Marquez.</p><p>&quot;I feel like I&#x27;m on cloud nine,&quot; Dia said in an interview after her coronation. &quot;I did not expect to win, but I gave it all to God. I told myself, if I&#x27;m meant to win, it&#x27;s my destiny—and it was my destiny.&quot;</p><p>&quot;It hasn&#x27;t really sunk in yet but everything was worth it in the end for me,&quot; said Dia.</p><div class="twitter-tweet twitter-tweet-rendered" style="display:flex;max-width:550px;width:100%;margin-top:10px;margin-bottom:10px"><iframe id="twitter-widget-0" scrolling="no" frameBorder="0" allowtransparency="true" allowfullscreen="" title="X Post" src="https://platform.twitter.com/embed/Tweet.html?dnt=false&amp;embedId=twitter-widget-0&amp;features=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%3D%3D&amp;frame=false&amp;hideCard=false&amp;hideThread=false&amp;id=1888786801286078704&amp;lang=en&amp;origin=https%3A%2F%2Fod2-workbench-web.abs-cbn.com%2F%23%2Fworkspace%2Fmonitoring%3Fitem%3Durn%3Anewsml%3Aod2-workbench-api.abs-cbn.com%3A2025-02-10T06%3A06%3A30.725027%3Ad60bf07c-f5e6-4fbe-8b6e-55604b25e7f2%26action%3Dedit%26popup&amp;sessionId=7378f88f0fa48add17df2a3bc8bd68e44092d9ae&amp;theme=light&amp;widgetsVersion=2615f7e52b7e0%3A1702314776716&amp;width=550px" style="position:static;visibility:visible;width:550px;height:601px;display:block;flex-grow:1" data-tweet-id="1888786801286078704"></iframe></div><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charSet="utf-8"></script><p>The night before the coronation, Mate was still sending videos to Miss Grand International 2024 runner-up CJ Opiaza--who was her pasarela coach--as she sought her advice.</p><p>&quot;I just send her videos and I practiced upstairs lang sa pool area. So, I was able to get in a little bit of practice last night before the coronation,&quot; she said. </p><p>Apart from her triple turns and stunning pasarela, another standout moment for Mate was singing the Selena classic &quot;Como La Flor&quot; during the swimsuit competition.</p><p>The singer-songwriter bared that she was chosen to be among the girls to give a live performance just a week before the coronation, which gave her the perfect opportunity to showcase her musical talent.</p><p>&quot;Music is my first home,&quot; Mate admitted. &quot;It was amazing to be on stage, singing my heart out, right before the swimsuit competition. It gave me confidence.&quot;</p><p>Her passion for music proved to be an advantage, seamlessly blending into her journey as a beauty queen: &quot;My dance training, my stage presence—all of it helped.&quot;</p><p>&quot;And to be able to sing on a Latin American stage? That was just incredible,&quot; the &quot;Ganda-Gandahan&quot; singer added.</p><p>Mate admitted to feeling nervous as she was waiting for her turn in the Q&amp;A segment. &quot;I was the last one called for the Top 7, and I was scared I wouldn’t make it,&quot; she recalled.</p><p>&quot;I knew that fate had brought me here. And when I got my question, I felt it—it was destiny.&quot;</p><p>Mate was asked about the values she believes are essential to create a fair society and why it&#x27;s important. </p><p>She answered, &quot;I think the most important value that we should have is kindness.&quot;</p><p>&quot;In my experience here in Bolivia, Latinas have shown me so much kindness and so much love even though racially I am not Latino. And the most beautiful thing I&#x27;ve noticed is that even though we don&#x27;t speak the same language, we share the same culture, same heart, and same faith in God. And I hope this shows everybody that if we use kindness, we can show that we are all the same and can create a better world and a better society for us all,&quot; Mate said.  </p><p>As she looked back on that moment, she said: &quot;It just really was destiny and fate that I got a good question, and destiny that all of the judges on the panel speak English.&quot;</p><p>Mate has been in Bolivia in three weeks, immersing herself in their vibrant culture while dealing with her own hurdles.</p><p>&quot;The language barrier was a challenge, but my pageant sisters and chaperones were so supportive. They always helped translate during events and tours,&quot; she shared. </p><p>She also is extremely thankful to her core team, family, and friends who became her biggest supporters throughout her journey.</p><p>With around 50 Filipinos cheering for her during the competition in Bolivia, Mate hopes to come back to the country to meet more of the people who supported her.</p><p>&quot;I&#x27;m more grateful that I&#x27;ve been given this title and that I&#x27;ve had such a supportive team and organization and family that brought me here. It&#x27;s really because of them that&#x27;s why I won,&quot; she said. </p><p>By the time she returns, she&#x27;ll be bringing the country&#x27;s second Reina Hispanoamericana crown after eight years.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/entertainment/showbiz/events/2025/2/10/singaporean-comic-kumar-is-excited-to-see-his-pinoy-fans-again-1049" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">PH&#x27;s Dia Mate wins Reina Hispanoamericana 2025  </a></div><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/lifestyle/beauty/2025/2/10/-i-knew-it-winwyn-marquez-proud-of-dia-mate-for-reina-hispanoamericana-2025-win-1408" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">&#x27;I knew it&#x27;: Winwyn Marquez proud of Dia Mate for Reina Hispanoamericana 2025 win</a></div><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/entertainment/showbiz/celebrities/2025/2/10/juan-karlos-congratulates-baby-dia-mate-for-winning-reina-hispanoamericana-2025-crown-1305" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Juan Karlos congratulates &#x27;baby&#x27; Dia Mate for winning Reina Hispanoamericana 2025 crown</a></div><div><strong>RELATED VIDEOS:</strong></div><div><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/FiWvbNvW7BE?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span><br/></div><div><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/5ucawSW0uWc?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span><br/></div>

<p>After six months of preparation, Dia Mate is now an international beauty queen.</p>