Creamline Cool Smashers opposite hitter and Binibining Pilipinas Globe 2018 titleholder Michelle Gumabao is ready to enter show business.
Michelle’s exposure to different industries, such as beauty pageantry and sports, will be her greatest asset in conquering the showbiz world.
“Hindi naman siguro goodbye sa volleyball. ‘Nung nakaraan na sumali ako sa PBB kakaumpisa pa lang din ng professional volleyball. I think na kung saan ako nag umpisa, ‘yun ang kailangan ko i-prioritize and I want to see kung gaano kalayo ang mararating ng volleyball right now (It‘s probably not goodbye to volleyball. When I joined PBB, professional volleyball had just started. I think I need to prioritize where I began, and I want to see how far volleyball can go right now). I’ve been playing in the professional league for 10 years now,” Michelle said.
Apart from her beautiful face, she also displays intelligence and knowledge about sports, having served as ABS-CBN Sports+Action‘s game analyst for the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) volleyball tournament in 2016 before it was telecast on GMA.
Sports has always been her domain. During her college years, she played volleyball as part of De La Salle University’s Lady Spikers and won three consecutive championships in the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP). She was awarded the league’s “Best Blocker” twice and held the title of UAAP volleyball’s Most Valuable Player in her last season.
After she graduated, she played in the country’s most competitive volleyball league, the Premier Volleyball League, alongside Alyssa Valdez in 2017. During her career in the PVL, she was awarded the league’s Best Opposite Spiker title five times.
Regarding pageantry, Michelle was crowned Binibining Pilipinas Globe in 2018, represented Quezon City in the Inaugural Miss Universe Philippines pageant, and placed second runner-up in 2020.
Now that she has stepped into showbiz, this is not new to her; in fact, she was part of the celebrity edition of Pinoy Big Brother: All In and became one of ABS-CBN‘s Star Magic talents.
“Sabi nga ng manager ko, ‘yung tatay ko at yung mga kapatid ko nasa showbiz. Gusto ko rin ito ma-experience at tingnan natin what’s in store for me here pero di ko pa tuluyan na iiwan ang volleyball (As my manager said, my dad and my siblings are in showbiz. I also want to experience this and see what‘s in store for me here, but I‘m not completely leaving volleyball yet),” she said.
She also appeared on Vice Ganda’s talk show Gandang Gabi Vice and the gag show Banana Nite in 2014.
Television is waiting for her. Her family has always been part of the industry, just like her brother Marco Gumabao, who has already made a mark as a celebrity. Her half-brother Paolo Gumabao debuted as a Vivamax artist years ago, not to mention her father, Dennis Roldan, who is now a pastor and was also a former actor.
“Gusto ko siya ma-try. Wala pa ako experience with acting pero ‘yung hosting, for the past two years, nahahasa na tayo dyan sa TV at sa events (I want to try it. I don‘t have any experience with acting yet, but with hosting, for the past two years, we‘ve been honing our skills on TV and at events),” she said.
Michelle’s multifaceted talents will make her stand out in this industry, especially now that she is under the management of Joel Roslin, who also manages Jose Manalo and Wally Bayola.
With her talent, face and intellect, Michelle could become one of the most versatile artists in the country. The possibilities for her are endless.
