LOS ANGELES, California — Thirteen-year-old Filipino Catherine Loria from Tiaong, Quezon shared honors with senior contestant Andrew Clarke from Jamaica when they were proclaimed Grand Champion Performers of the World in the 2008 World Championships of Performing Arts (WCOPA) or the Hollywood Olympics.
The grand finals night, held at the Westin Bonaventure Hotel saw Loria duplicating fellow Filipino singer Aria Clemente’s feat last year. Loria sang Yolanda Adam’s version of “I Believe I Can Fly” at the finals. She bested Tippy dos Santos and Rachel Razon, junior vocalists also from the Philippines; Courtney Mary Janssen from New Zealand and Oleksandr Chernenko from the Ukraine.
Loria performed five vocal entries in the preliminary round namely Broadway, Country and Western, Gospel, Pop and R&B/Soul/Jazz. She sang the solo version of Mariah Carey and Whitney Houston’s “When you Believe” in the semi-final round.
Loria’s victory made her the third Grand Champion Performer of the World from the Philippines after Jed Madela in 2005 and Aria Clemente in 2007. Both Jed and Aria performed in the opening and closing ceremonies of 2008 WCOPA.
Actor and classical singer Clarke beat senior vocalists Marielle Corpuz from the Philippines, Noryn Aziz from Malaysia and Nataly Gordienco from Moldova. Clarke also received $10,000 in scholarship awarded by the School for Film and Television in New York.
Patterned after the Olympics, outstanding amateur and professional performing artists from the United States and over 40 countries have competed in this international event.
The Philippine team’s 2008 participants included vocalists Panky Trinidad, Dex De Rosa, Abegail Dorado, Glee Nette Gaddi and the Sison brothers (Marek, Enzo and Ruiz) who made it to the semi-final round and received semi-final round medals.
The rest of the Philippines’ competing vocalists in both junior and senior divisions failed to get ahead of round one. Contestants in the preliminary round have received gold, silver, bronze medals, etc. as special awards based on the scores given by the judges. –INQUIRER.net
July 2025
Nutrition Month
“Give us much more than P50 increase
for proper nutrition!”
Invoke Article 33 of the ILO Constitution
against the military junta in Myanmar
to carry out the 2021 ILO Commission of Inquiry recommendations
against serious violations of
Forced Labour and Freedom of Association protocols.
Accept National Unity Government (NUG)
of Myanmar. Reject Military!
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July
3 July – International Day of Cooperatives
3 July – International Plastic Bag Free Day
5 July – World Youth Skills Day
7 July – Global Forgiveness Day
11 July – World Population Day
17 July – World Day for International Justice
28 July – World Nature Conservation Day
30 July – World Day against Trafficking in Persons
Monthly Observances:
Schools Safety Month
Nutrition Month
National Disaster Consciousness Month
Weekly Observances:
Week 2: Cultural Communities Week
Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprise
Development Week
Week 3: National Science and
Technology Week
National Disability Prevention and
Rehabilitation Week
July 1-7:
National Culture Consciousness Week
July 13-19:
Philippines Business Week
Week ending last Saturday of July:
Arbor Week
Daily Observances:
First Saturday of July:
International Cooperative Day
in the Philippines
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