Third time’s a charm: It was Ahtisa Manalo’s moment to win – and she did

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Ahtisa Manalo's Miss Universe Philippines 2025 crown is long overdue. It took her three tries to get there, but it's worth the wait.

MANILA, Philippines – After three tries, Quezon Province’s Ma. Ahtisa Manalo finally won the Miss Universe Philippines title.

Ahtisa clinched the highly coveted crown during the finals night on Friday, May 2, besting 65 other candidates, including heavy favorites like Miss Earth Air 2023 Yllana Marie Aduana and Reina Hispanoamericana 2017 Winwyn Marquez.

The new Miss Universe Philippines will represent the pageant-crazy country in the global edition, which is now under the leadership of a Thai owner.

She is also the first successful Binibining Pilipinas alumna who won the top title since the Miss Universe Philippines went to a different franchise holder in 2020.

Journey to the crown

Ahtisa’s victory did not come off as a surprise because she is a pageant veteran. Her journey to the crown could be summarized in three stages.

First, the newbie charm.

Her first try for the national title was during Binibining Pilipinas 2018, where she was crowned Binibining Pilipinas International — just a title below the eventual Miss Universe 2018 Catriona Gray.

Ahtisa was runner-up at the Miss International pageant on the same year. That year, she banked on her strong pasarela and her doll-like features. Her styling was impeccable, her wardrobe and clothes made her look young and fresh, which was the goal in competing for the Japan-based pageant.

Then come 2024, the return and experimentation

Ahtisa displayed a different version of herself — more mature and fierce — which aligned with the Miss Universe prototype. Her pasarela looked very technical, which was still good, but different from her 2018 run.

Her makeup, as well as her wardrobe, leaned into the more fierce side of styling: darker, elegant. The styling was good, but again, different from her doll-like presentation six years ago. In the end, Ahtisa clinched the Miss Cosmo title during the Miss Universe Philippines 2024 pageant, then went on to place as semifinalist in the international pageant.

This year, Ahtisa showed the most confident and elated version of herself.

When she returned for her third try, she surprised everyone, even her fellow candidates. This time, Ahtisa was more calm, but more eager. She merged the assets she displayed during her 2018 and 2024 runs to make her 2025 pageant more memorable.

Her styling is still elegant, but the overall look emphasized the beauty of her face again. Her makeup looked better this time, highlighting her doll-like features once more, which were her greatest asset when she almost won the country’s seventh Miss International crown.

During the preliminary competition, the fierce but composed Ahtisa rocked the stage in the swimsuit round. Similar to the color of her 2018 national costume in Binibining Pilipinas and swimsuit in the Miss International pageant, Ahtisa wore a bright yellow gown for her preliminary contest.

Ahtisa retained her styling during the finals night. Once again, she dominated the swimsuit round with confidence, but the cherry on top was her pink embellished gown that made her radiate like a true queen.

Although she fell down while walking in her dress, she recovered with grace. The pink was reminiscent of the gowns she wore during her Binibining Pilipinas and Miss International pageants, where she both won. In her third try, Ahtisa looked more happy and appeared to have been enjoying the competition.

During the question-and-answer round, Ahtisa displayed an improvement in her communication. She’s more conversational in answering the question related to elections. She was able to relate it to her personal story, specifically how she and her grandmother dreamt for her to become Miss Universe someday.

It was not the best answer of the night, but it was heartfelt, natural, and personal. She spoke like a normal person, and did not sound pageant patty at all.

These are the factors why and how Ahtisa won the crown finally. Of course, on top of the reason that her victory was long overdue — it was seven years in the making.

All eyes are on Ahtisa now because she might pull off a Pia Wurtzbach win — a Philippine delegate who won the local title after three tries, then won the Miss Universe crown later on.

Will the stars in the universe align for Ahtisa to clinch the country’s fifth Miss Universe crown? We’ll find out in the next months. – Rappler.com