Beauty queen and actress Herlene Budol recently revealed to the public her heartbreaking decision to retire from the pageant world, amid news that Wilbert Tolentino has resigned as her manager.
In her latest YouTube vlog, Herlene expressed her realizations after the recently-held Miss Grand International 2023. She said, "Siguro nakaka-tatlong pageant na ho ako pero hindi pa rin po pwede. Ibig sabihin 'wag na nating yang ipilit. Ibig sabihin po 'nun, ako po si Herlene Nicole Budol na nagsasabi, sorry Pilipinas, this is my last pageant."
It was in 2019 when Herlene was first discovered as a host for Willie Revillame's show, Wowowin. The coined term "hipon" was associated with Herlene on the show because of her having a good physique, but not the so-called 'typical beauty' facial features. Thus, the public embraced Herlene as the funny and energetic "Hipon Girl."
This became a breakthrough for Herlene to further reach her dream of joining big beauty pageants. Soon after her rise to fame as "Hipon Girl," she started her journey via the 2019 Binibining Pilipinas competition, with the motivation to prove that anyone could be a beauty queen. True enough, she finished 1st Runner Up and bagged several special awards at the said pageant.
In 2022, she joined Miss Planet International in Uganda but later on withdrew because of very concerning issues with the pageant organizer. Herlene even revealed that she had begged the organizers to be allowed to go home.
Despite the bad experience, Herlene joined the Miss Grand International 2023 in a bid to finally achieve the grand prize. But she drew flak for her non-serious answers during the press con of Miss Grand International.
In her vlog, a tearful Herlene admitted that the public's criticism against her made her realize that she is meant for other things—but not for pageants. Herlene shared, "Nasasaktan lang po ako kasi parang totoo po lahat ng sinasabi niyo na pinipilit ko lang po talagang sumali, na hindi ko po deserve. Nagsusubok lang po ako na abutin yung mga pangarap ko na magkaroon po ako ng crown at ma-represent ko po yung Pilipinas pero hindi ko po pala kaya."
Although she may have lost hope of becoming the ultimate beauty queen, she assured viewers that she is not giving up on her dreams. She manifests that another door will open for her and lead her to a new journey that's more suitable. Herlene even mentioned the possibility of joining Victoria's Secret as a model. "Hindi po porket huminto ako sa nasimulan ko ay ibig sabihin sumuko na ako. Patuloy pa rin ang laban! Malay niyo sa ibang journey ako dalhin. Siguro sasali ako sa mga Victoria's Secret, mga ramp model kasi wala nang Q&A," Herlene stated.
Herlene also thanked her supporters throughout her stint as a beauty queen. And to her critics, she said, "Sa lahat po ng may ayaw sa akin, titigil na po ako. Hindi ko na po ipipilit ang sarili ko."
The end of her journey as a beauty queen is not the only thing that has changed for Herlene. Just recently, news surfaced about Wilbert resigning as Herlene's manager. Herlene also addressed the issue on her YouTube vlog, confirming that Wilber will be focusing more on his health and family. "May mga bagay lang po dapat mas unahin at i-priority po talaga. Ang kanyang health at kanyang family. Base naman po sa pag-uusap namin nandyan pa rin po siya anytime, anywhere. One call away (siya)," she told the viewers.
At present, Herlene is the lead star of GMA's Magandang Dilag.
