Alyssa Valdez

The Philippines’ Alyssa Valdez became a member of the exclusive one million follower club on Facebook on Wednesday. The Filipino star joined two-time Olympic gold medallist Sheilla Castro Blassioli of Brazil and Thailand's Nootsara Tomkom, who have already hit the same social media milestone.

Valdez represented the Philippines at the age-group and senior levels. She first played in the 2008 Asian Youth Girls’ Championship and skippered the team in the 2015 Asian Women’s U23 Championship.

She was a member of the national team that played at the 2014 FIVB Volleyball Women’s World Championship Zonal Qualification Tournament in Vietnam and was the country’s flag bearer at the 2015 Southeast Asian Games in Singapore.

She also represented her country in the succeeding editions of the Southeast Asian Games in Malaysia and the Philippines, the Asian Women’s Championship in the Philippines and the Asian Games in Indonesia.

The 28-year-old volleyball star is currently part of the Filipino version of reality TV show Big Brother as a celebrity housemate.