“We always feel like people underestimate beauty queens” – Maggie & Parul
In the gripping finale of The Amazing Race Asia Season 5 on AXN, nothing stood in the way of the Filipino beauty queens and their winners’ crown.
Arriving first at the pit stop in Bali with just minutes to spare, Maggie Wilson-Consunji and Parul Shah survived six countries, 12 cities and over 12,000 kilometres, beating 10 other teams to claim the ultimate USD100,000 cash prize.
“We warmly congratulate Maggie and Parul on winning this season of The Amazing Race Asia. It was our toughest race yet with several surprising twists and some extremely challenging conditions. All 22 racers should be super proud of what they achieved during their journey. Their determination, camaraderie and sense of humor ensured that The Amazing Race Asia was the top program in its time slot amongst all English general entertainment channels in Singapore, Malaysia and the Philippines*,” said Virginia Lim, Senior Vice President and Head of Content, Production and Marketing.
Maggie and Parul joined the world’s most famous adventure-reality series in the hopes of winning the US$100,000 for Parul’s family.
“It was such a relief to win because the money can help my family, especially my Dad who suffered a stroke. He taught me to never give up in life and I did this to prove that no matter what life throws at you, never give up,” said Parul.
Throughout the grueling race, Maggie and Parul stayed in the middle of the pack, but strengthened their position and gained serious momentum in the final two legs.
“We played the game really well and climbed the ladder ever so slowly. We didn’t want to come in first in any of the legs because we didn’t want to have a target on our backs. Who would have thought that two beauty queens would win! I’m pretty sure we’ll be talking about this moment for decades!” said an ecstatic Maggie.
AXN fans across Asia tuned in every Thursday night to watch the latest drama and hijinks unfold as the 11 teams competed in a series of physical and mental challenges against diverse geographic backdrops. Connecting fans to the racers, AXN hosted Facebook Live sessions immediately after each episode where fans could ask questions and post messages of support to the eliminated teams. The 18 Facebook Live sessions collectively reached 9.5 million fans and garnered over 2.7 million views to date.