Pabor na pabor si Miss Universe 2018 Catriona Gray sa pagsali ng mga senior citizen sa pageantry.

Matatandaan na last year ay inanunsyo ng Miss Universe orgnization na tatanggalin na nila ang age limit sa lahat ng global pageants ngayong 2024.

“This change will apply for all 2024 pageants globally. Starting then, every adult woman in the world will be eligible to compete to be Miss Universe,” pahayag ng organization sa Instagram noong Setyembre 2023.

At kamakailan nga, ipinakilala na ng Miss Universe Philippines ang kanilang first-ever senior citizen candidate, ang 69-year old na si Jocelyn Cubales from Quezon City.

Sa latest interview kay Catriona ni MJ Felipe ng ABS-CBN ay nahingan siya ng reaksyon tungkol dito at sey ng beauty queen, “I mean, I think it’s wonderful.”

Dagdag pa ng beauty queen, for the longest time ay nalilimitahan ang mga babae because of their age.

“As woman, I feel like age is usually used to kind of limit us and our potentials. There are terms always thrown at women, like, ‘oh, your biological clock is ticking’ or ‘your time is running out’ or ‘these are your prime years,’ mga ganyan.”

Wala umanong masama kung ang isang babaeng tulad ni Jocelyn ay gustong tuparin ang pangarap regardless of her age.

“Why not? She’s enjoying herself, she’s representing her community and I think, those are all great things,” she said.

Pero naiintindihan naman niya ang ibang tao na tutol sa bagong ruling na ito sa pageantry.

“We’ve come across many things that are considered ‘traditional,’ and so as the rules are starting to be lifted, I can understand why the anger of some people or kinda rubs them the wrong way, but for me kasi, I am a fan of pageantry but I also love what pageantry stands for. It gave me a platform to talk about my cause work that is why I wanted to go there.

“It gives other women a platform to talk about what they want, to showcase something, to represent someone, a community, or something about themselves.

“And so I see pageantry as a lens of that—not just beautiful women who are fit, who are walking on stage. That’s not what pageantry is for me and that’s why, all of these, I guess, forward movements in terms of what the organization is doing is something that I support and I’m happy for.

“But I understand other people who may have a traditional sense like, ‘Oh, we just want a fashion show with great looking women,'” pahayag ni former Miss U.