Apriel Smith

Biography

Apriel Deguilmo Smith (born October 29, 1995) is a Filipino beauty queen who was appointed Miss Charm Philippines 2026. She will represent the Philippines at Miss Charm 2026. Smith entered national pageantry with her stint in Binibining Pilipinas 2016, which was followed by her victory at Binibining Cebu 2017. She competed twice at Miss Universe Philippines: in 2020 and 2026, reaching the finals in her latter stint, qualifying her for a national title under its sister organization, The Miss Philippines.

== Early life and education == Smith was born on October 29, 1995. She is the youngest of four siblings and the only daughter of her family. Her father is Daryl Smith, an imported African-American Philippine Basketball Association player. Her name is derived from "April", her father's birth month; her mother added an "e" to her name to continue the pattern of giving their children names containing that letter. Smith was active with volleyball in her upbringing. In 2007, Danny Booc, an agent of model agency Ozar Model Philippines, approached Smith while she was running household errands. He invited her to his agency for training and later became her mentor and manager. She went on to enter the beauty camp Aces and Queens as a trainee. Smith studied at Abellana National School. During her time in that school, she participated at the Milo Little Olympics, where she won "Best Muse". At university, she studied tourism management at the University of San Carlos.

== Pageantry ==

=== Local pageants === During Sinulog in 2012, she represented Lumad Basakanon of Basak San Nicolas, Cebu City, at the Festival Queen competition, where she was named the winner. In May 2013, Smith competed at Miss Mandaue 2013, where she finished as third runner-up to Steffi Aberasturi. Afterward, she proceeded to compete and win in a number of local pageants, including Miss Cebu City Olympics 2012, Miss Badian 2015, and Miss San Fernando 2015.

=== Binibining Pilipinas 2016 ===

In February 2016, Smith qualified for Binibining Pilipinas 2016, her first national pageant. She finished in the top 15.

=== 2017–2019: Return to local pageants === Following her stint in Binibining Pilipinas, she represented Badian in the inaugural Binibining Cebu 2017, where she was named the winner, receiving a cash prize of ₱500,000, gifts worth ₱300,000, and ₱200,000 in funds for her hometown. While publications and her supporters expected her to compete in Binibining Pilipinas 2019 following her reign, she deferred her return to national pageantry to 2020. She continued her run in local and regional pageants, competing at Miss Isabel 2019 in Leyte and Miss Zamboanga 2019 and being named the winner in the former pageant.

=== Miss Universe Philippines 2020 ===