Valeska Saab

Valeska Saab Gómez
Saab during the Miss World 2007 pageant in Sanya, People's Republic of China
Born	Valeska Alexandra Saab Gómez May 7, 1984 Guayaquil, Province of Guayas, Ecuador
Residence	[]], Province of Guayas, Ecuador
Nationality	Ecuadorian
Education	Unidad Educativa Bilingüe Nuevo Mundo High School
Alma mater	Brookdale Community College Blue Hill College
Occupation	Politician, charity worker, model
Known for	Virreina de Guayaquil 2004 Miss Maja Mundial 2005 Miss World Ecuador 2007 Miss World Beauty with a Purpose Challenge 2007 (shared with Kayi Cheung from Hong Kong) Miss World 2007 (Top 16)
Political party	Madera de Guerrero/PSC
Spouse(s)	NA
Children	NA
Parent(s)	Jesús Saab and María del Rocío Gómez
Relatives	Nicolás Lapentti (cousin) Giovanni Lapentti (cousin) Andrés Gómez (first cousin once removed)

Valeska Alexandra Saab Gómez (born May 7, 1984 in Guayaquil) is an Ecuadorian Politician, charity worker, model and beauty pageant titleholder.

The 2005 Miss Maja Mundial title holder and, with Kayi Cheung from Hong Kong, the 2007 Beauty with a Purpose Challenge winner during the Miss World 2007 contest. In Ecuador, she is noted for her work with children suffering from Ichthyosis. From 2009 to 2013, Saab was a Member of the Andean Parliament.

Early life

Saab was born in Guayaquil, Ecuador, to Jesús Saab and María del Rocío Chio Gómez Buenaventura on Monday, May 7, 1984. Just the day before her birth (Sunday, May 6), León Febres Cordero had become President of Ecuador defeating Rodrigo Borja in the second round of the 1984 Ecuadorian Presidential Election. She has two older brothers, Cristian and Patrick, and a younger one, Javier.^[1] In Guayaquil, Saab attended the Unidad Educativa Bilingüe Nuevo Mundo High School, Brookdale Community College and Blue Hill College where she studied International Business.^[2] She is fluent in Spanish and English.

Pageantry

Her beauty queen career began in 2000 in Salinas, a coastal city in the Santa Elena Province, Ecuador, near Guayaquil, when she was crowned Reina del Salinas Yacht Club.^[3] In 2004, in the Reina de Guayaquil pageant, Saab placed as 1st runner-up and so won the title of Virreina de Guayaquil.^[4] After that, she was chosen Reina Hispanoamericana Ecuador 2004 and so competed in the Reina Hispanoamericana contest held in Cochabamba, Bolivia, but without success. However, a few months after, in Sincelejo, Colombia, Saab won the Miss Maja Mundial 2005, her major international title.^[5] She placed again as 1st runner-up in the Miss Ecuador 2007 pageant and so won the Miss World Ecuador 2007 title.

Saab then competed in the Miss World 2007 held in Sanya, People's Republic of China where made history by becoming the first Miss Ecuador to win the Beauty With A Purpose award, based on her charity work helping children with a terrible genetic skin condition called ichthyosis. Saab tied with Miss Hong Kong, Kayi Cheung, for the award so both advanced to the semifinals automatically.^[6] She is the first Miss Ecuador to make the Miss World semifinals since Alicia Gisela Cucalón Macas did in 1986. Saab retired from beauty contests in 2007 and began a career as a model.

Political career

In 2009, Saab was elected to the Andean Parliament for the Madera de Guerrero/PSC,^[7] the former President León Febres Cordero's Political Party. In May 2012, as President of Fifth Commission "Of Social Affairs and Human Development", she coordinated the III Social Andean Summit.^[8] She finished her period in 2013.

Charity Work

After winning the title of Miss World Ecuador 2007, Saab began helping children affected by a rare disease called ichtyosis; and her work continues from then on.^[9] In addition, she is a member of the board of management of a charitable foundation called Kinderzentrum, an institution dedicated to helping special children with syndrome of down, autism, cerebral paralysis among other emotional problems.^[10]

Personal life

Saab is of Lebanese background. She is niece of the 1971 Miss World Ecuador María Cecila Gómez Buenaventura and her husband, the economist, politician and former Ecuadorian basketball player Nicolás Lapentti Carrión, who was a close collaborator of the ex-President Febres Cordero, National Assembly Member from 2009 to 2013 and, for almost 17 years in a row, Prefect of the Province of Guayas. Saab is cousin of the former professional tennis players Nicolás and Giovanni Lapentti, and 1990 French Open winner Andrés Gómez's niece. On January 14, 2011, in Samborondón, near Guayaquil, she married to young Guayaquilean entrepreneur Nicolás Florido.^[11] Saab gave birth to her first daughter Alana (named after American professional surfer Alana Rene Blanchard)^[12] on October 11, 2012^[13] and to her second one, Alissa, in 2014.^[14]

References

1. "Valeska Saab competirá con otras 40 jóvenes en Miss Maja Mundial", El Universo, 2005-07-09, retrieved 2013-03-10
2. "Valeska Saab, la reina organiza un concierto", El Universo, 2007-08-14, retrieved 2010-04-21
3. "Valeska Saab quiere trabajar por los barrios pobres de la ciudad", El Universo, 2004-09-28, retrieved 2013-03-10
4. "Kristel Olsen, reina de Guayaquil", El Universo, 2004-10-01, retrieved 2013-05-07
5. "Miss Maja Mundial", Models Beauty, 2005-07-24, retrieved 2013-03-11
6. "Valeska Saab es semifinalista del Miss Mundo", El Universo, 2007-12-02, retrieved 2010-04-21
7. Omar Meza, Andres (2009-06-14), "Valeska Saab agradece al país por el apoyo recibido", CRE Satelital Ecuador, retrieved 2010-04-21
8. "Actividad Parlamentaria Valeska Saab", Parlamento Andino, 2012-08-15, retrieved 2013-03-11
9. "Valeska continúa con su buena labor", La Hora, 2009-08-15, retrieved 2013-03-11
10. "Valeska Saab", Cosas, 2009-05-22, retrieved 2013-03-11
11. "Valeska Saab dará el sí quiero a Nicolás Florido", Expreso, 2011-01-12, retrieved 2013-05-07
12. "My wife and I are going to name our daughter after you", Twitter, Inc. (US), 2012-06-28, retrieved 2013-05-07
13. "Happiness!!! Pure Happiness!!!", Twitter, Inc. (US), 2012-10-11, retrieved 2013-05-07
14. "10 cosas que hacen feliz a Valeska Saab", Revista Hogar, 2015-05-06, retrieved 2015-10-07