People were surprised when they initially heard that Miss Puerto Rico and Miss Argentina had secretly married. A hidden queer femme romance spawned by pageant culture? Miss Puerto Rico Fabiola Valentin and Miss Argentina Mariana Varela’s once-secret courtship is now public knowledge, as the year’s (or century’s) new power couple disclosed on Instagram that they had married on October 28, 2022.
Former Miss Argentina and former Miss Puerto Rico surprised and pleased fans when they announced their sudden wedding on Instagram. According to reports, Mariana Varela and Fabiola Valentin dated for two years before getting married.
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Mariana Varela and Fabiola Valentin met in Thailand during the 2020 Miss Grand International competition, where they represented Argentina and Puerto Rico, respectively. After finishing in the top ten of the pageant, the two beauty queens appeared to remain close on social media. What fans didn’t realize was that they were secretly dating the entire time.
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Fabiola Valentin is a Camuy native from Puerto Rico. In August 2015, she triumphed over eleven other candidates to claim victory at La Concha A Renaissance Resort’s La Cara de IMAGEN competition in San Juan, Puerto Rico. After that, she entered the world of professional modeling. From 2017 to 2021, she attended college to earn a degree in journalism at San Juan’s Universidad del Sagrado Corazon.
Representing Camuy, she competed in Miss Universe Puerto Rico 2019 on June 13 at the Luis A. Ferré Fine Arts Center in San Juan against 27 other participants. To top it all off, Madison Anderson finished in second place. On December 2, 2020, she was formally named Miss Grand Puerto Rico 2020. As Miss Grand International 2020 for Puerto Rico, she faced off against 62 other contenders, including Mariana Valera of Argentina, at SHOW DC in Bangkok, Thailand, on March 27, 2021. The two of them finished in the top ten.
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Professional model Varela, 24, graduated with a BA in journalism from the National University of Avellaneda. She has a history of competing in beauty pageants, and in 2019 she represented her country at Miss Universe. She didn’t win first place, but she plans to learn and grow from the experience anyhow. She stated, “I learned from every moment of joy, anguish, insecurity, exhilaration, etc.” when asked why she thinks she will win this time.
Varela is grateful that the national group saw potential in her and gave her this opportunity. She believes that if you dare to dream, you must also dare to make those dreams a reality. The diva who was accused of being incompetent to represent her country on the international stage said, “I never gave up because regardless of whatever crisis that we go through, it is vital to not lose focus on how much we are worth.”
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After suffering from gender-based violence, she decided to fight for women’s rights worldwide. She is also strongly against any violence against women. She has been working hard to reach a wide audience; hopefully, her field of work will help her get her message out.
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The couple shared similar Instagram Reels of their relationship highlights, like romantic walks on the beach, candid cuddles, champagne toasts, and a proposal with gold and silver balloons spelling out “Marry me?”
One of their post’s main images depicts the couple outside the city courtroom in San Juan, Puerto Rico, where they married on October 28. “We opened the doors on a special day after resolving to keep our relationship private,” the caption says in Spanish.
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Fans, celebrities, and other pageant contestants praised Varela and Valentin for their picture-perfect relationship. “Congratulations. MGI brought together a beautiful union,” wrote Ghanaian singer and beauty queen Abena Akuaba, who won Miss Grand International 2020.
The organization which hosts the Miss Grand International competition also wished the couple well on social media. Varela responded to the well-wishes by writing- “Thanks for all the love! We are very happy and blessed.”
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While the news of this wedding is obviously very exciting for those who stan gay nuptials to an unhealthy and arguably parasocial degree, it’s also important to note the historic nature of this moment; Gay marriage has only been legal in Puerto Rico since 2015 in Argentina since 2010, and in the United States for seven years. Their fans eagerly await to witness these two women express their love with the world.
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Homosexuality is neither exceptional nor out of the ordinary. These two went against the stereotypes by not conforming to heteronormativity and pursuing their hearts’ desires instead. They share a happy love life with each other and aren’t going to let anything get in the way of their relationship.
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There have been over 2 million views and over 1 lakh likes since their video was first shared. The comments section was swamped with well-wishes for the happy pair from online users. They showed their loving relationship in the video. It depicted the two superstars enjoying a romantic vacation together.
The video also showed a glimpse of the marriage proposal, which was elegantly decorated with balloons and lights. In the clip, the lovely ladies proudly displayed their engagement rings. The video concluded with brief clips of the happy couple wearing white dresses and suits on their wedding day.