Half-Filipina Is Miss Norway Universe

(ABS-CBN) - Kirby Ann Basken has again proven that the beauty of a Filipina is a standout after winning this year's Miss Norway Universe crown.

Twenty-one-year-old Basken, half Filipino and half Norwegian, received a unanimous vote from the nine judges of the pageant. She also received the highest Internet vote of 59 percent.

Aside from the crown, Basken won 200,000 Kroner (P1.6 million), a diamond ring and a luxury trip to Phuket Island in Thailand. She will fly to Mexico next month to compete in the 2007 Miss Universe Pageant.

Basken's roots can be traced in Laguna, her mother's province. Her mother, Grace, married a Norwegian and is now a dance instructor in Oslo, Norway.

Before bagging the 2007 Miss Norway Universe crown, Basken emerged as the first-runner up in the same pageant last year.

She also joined the local beauty pageant, Mutya ng Pilipinas, last June and was crowned Mutya ng Pilpinas-Asia Pacific International 2006.

Interviewed by ABS-CBN News last year, Basken said she likes to join show business. She said she also wants to have a job that involves children.