Miss Universe Philippines – Camiguin 2024 Rethiana Rosa. Images: Instagram/@rethianarosy, YouTube/Empire Philippines
Miss Universe Philippines 2024’s bet from Camiguin, Rethiana Rosa, admitted she got too excited after “sneaking a peek” at the national pageant’s results which ultimately resulted in the coronation of Bulacan’s Chelsea Manalo.
Rosa made waves on social media after she was caught on video not so subtly peeking at the Miss Universe Philippines 2024 results on the cue card of host Alden Richards, who was just about a meter away from her.
A screengrab by one @loveyourculture posted on Tiktok a clip of Rosa then mouthing something to her fellow candidates before exchanging high fives with them.
@loveyourculture Marites moment sa Miss Universe PH #fyp #fypシ゚viral #fypage #fyppppppppppppppppppppppp #missuniverse #missuniverse2024 #camiguin ♬ original sound – Love, AWJ
In a quick chat with INQUIRER.net, Rosa admitted that she, Occidental Mindoro’s Zoleil Taño, and Toledo City’s Kim Irish Placibe were betting on their chosen winner before she saw Richards’ card.
“I knew the winner was in Alden’s card since he announced the winners, so I tried to sneak a peek. Then I saw Cainta and Bulacan at the bottom,” she said referring to Cainta’s Stacey Gabriel and Manalo.
“It was quite easy to distinguish [the winners] because Cainta is shorter than the word Bulacan. So chinismis ko na sa mga katabi ko kaya kami nagtatawanan,” she continued. “Alden’s card was open and visible [even though] it looks far onscreen. Naka-wide lang ‘yung cam kaya medyo malayo po siyang tingnan. But in person, hindi talaga.”
(It was quite easy to distinguish the winners because Cainta is shorter than the word Bulacan. So I told the results to those beside me, which resulted in us laughing. Alden’s card was open and visible even though it looked far onscreen. A wide camera was used at the time. But in person, it could be seen easily.)
Rosa recalled she peeked at the results because she was “too excited” about who would be crowned, although she meant “no harm.” Despite this, they were unaware they were being filmed at the time.
“We were just curious and we got excited with the results. We were just happy for Chelsea because we all knew she was such an underrated candidate,” she said.
The Camiguin native also confessed that she and her fellow delegates wanted to enjoy the rest of the pageant since they were already “feeling tired.”
“At the end of the day, we beauty queens are all humans. I know it was wrong to intentionally peek at the results card. We are not perfect, but we want to enjoy our final moments at the MUPH stage. It was entirely a raw situation,” she added.
On Chelsea Manalo, MUPH journey
While many fans consider Manalo to be a “dark horse” winner, Rosa said she already saw the potential in the Bulacan native “from the beginning” of the pageant.
“As a candidate myself, I saw her potential to win the crown. I actually told Chelsea that she would win at an Avon shoot,” she said. “I can vouch for all the other girls that we really are happy for Chelsea. We’re not bitter and no one was against her win. She really deserves it.”
Rosa also looked back at a time when Manalo checked up on her when she suffered an eye infection. “I love Chelsea because she is so nice. She even checked up on me when I had an eye infection before the competition. That’s how nice she is.”
This led to the beauty queen sharing how their “sisterly bond” at the national tilt “changed her life,” while pointing out how “easy” it was for others to criticize the Miss Universe Philippines organization.
“It was one of the most beautiful experiences in my entire life. I met a lot of people who are beautiful inside and out. People find it so easy to criticize the girls and the organization but what they don’t know is that there is indeed sisterhood [among us]. The organization really takes care of us,” she said.
When asked if she would enter the national tilt again, Rosa said joining the Miss Universe Philippines pageant once is already “enough” for her.
“I really enjoyed my experience as Miss Universe Philippines – Camiguin, especially with the love and support I received. A lot of people messaged me to join again but for me, having this once-in-a-lifetime experience is enough,” she said.
“For other pageants, hindi ko pa po alam. As for now, gusto kong maging artista. Char (I don’t know. As for now, I want to be an actress. Kidding)!” she continued.
Manalo was crowned as Michelle Dee’s successor at the pageant’s coronation night on the morning of May 23.
She is on a quest to win the Philippines’ fifth Miss Universe crown after Gloria Diaz (1969), Margarita Moran (1973), Pia Wurtzbach (2015), and Catriona Gray (2018).
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