JEDDAH, 17 August 2006 — Despite battling a slew of disasters which included delays in her flight and lost luggage, the daughter of a Filipino worker based in Jeddah went on to win a title in the recently concluded 10th World Championships of Performing Arts in Los Angeles, California.
Jeremie Antiporda-Oyson, who has performed twice in Jeddah in the past, was adjudged World Champion Award for Vocals (Solo). The 29-year-old was among 18 Filipino contestants, along with hundreds of others from 40 countries around the world. The finals were held at the Hollywood Palladium.
Oyson’s rendition of What Kind of Fool I Am, popularized by Barbra Streisand, earned her the most coveted world title, said her proud father, Paul Antiporda.
Aside from the prestigious title, Oyson also won four gold medals for the pop, Broadway, original and contemporary categories, a silver medal in the R&B/Jazz category, plus an Industry Award.
Jeremie, as she is fondly called by her friends and fans in the Philippines and Jeddah, is married to Michael Oyson, a financial analyst based in Hong Kong. She is the eldest of the three children of Paul Antiporda, a finance manager at Bawasir Co.
Antiporda narrated how her daughter almost missed the competition after being stranded for several hours in Hong Kong en-route to L.A. due to a very strong typhoon.
“What should have been a 16-hour trip from Manila to Los Angeles took her 54 hours,” said Antiporda.
Soon after arriving in L.A., she was shocked to find out that her bags containing all her gowns, make-up and accessories needed for the competition did not arrive with her in the flight. “But despite the panic and battling a massive jet lag, she managed to muster the energy to look for alternative second-hand gowns at a nearby bridal shop.
“At the contest proper and while rendering her piece, my daughter told me that a loud screech came out of the monitor that almost made her to stop but she manage to go ahead as if nothing happened, endearing her a round of applause,” Antiporda said.
This year, only five Champions of the World made it to the finals: Philippines for pop category, USA for broadway, Kazakhstan for opera, Trinidad & Tobago for contemporary, and Jamaica for the R&B category.
The US and Philippines were awarded the overall female world champion awards for vocal (solo) in the senior category.
