Chella Falconer shares why Miss Universe Philippines is worth coming back to

Miss Universe Philippines Cebu Province Chella Falconer/ARMIN P. ADINA

This year’s edition of the Miss Universe Philippines pageant has three returning candidates, two of whom have just come from last year’s contest, while Chella Falconer from Cebu returns four years since she first joined.

Fan favorite Ahtisa Manalo, 2024 second runner-up who was eventually crowned The Miss Philippines-Cosmo, is representing Quezon Province anew, while Micah Martinez, who received the Miss Bingo Plus title, is carrying Cabanatuan City this time after bannering Nueva Ecija last year.

Falconer, for her part, represented the province of Misamis Oriental when she first competed in the Miss Universe Philippines pageant in 2021 as a 21-year-old accountancy student. She advanced to the Top 16 of the competition, with Cebuana lass Beatrice Luigi Gomez taking home the top prize.

Now at 25, Falconer had to go under a different system to get to where she is now. If before she underwent a screening process, this year she had to take part in the Miss Universe Philippines Cebu contest to earn her place in the national competition.

“I believe it’s every woman’s dream to become Miss Universe Philippines,” she said when INQUIRER.net asked her in an interview why she joined the same national pageant a second time.

“Miss Universe for me is really a crown that changes your life. I want something much deeper, where I can influence and I can also inspire other people to pursue no matter what age, no matter where they are in life. And that’s what I’m standing for. That’s why Miss Universe Philippines is the crown that’s worth returning to,”  she added.

Miss Universe Philippines Cebu Province Chella Falconer/ARMIN P. ADINA

And while Falconer sees herself as the same bubbly and fun lady who competed in 2021, she said she is now wiser. “Maybe it comes with age also,” she said.

And while she was not able to earn an accountancy degree as she had earlier plannned, Falconer said she is setting her sights on pursuing nursing, instead. “I’m still in the process of discovering what I reallly want. Find what you really want in life, then go for it. That’s what I want to tell people, to never settle,” she explained.

Falconer also plans to enter show business in the future, to try acting and become a recording artist. “Maybe it will happen for me. Who knows? The sky isn’t even the limit,” she said.

But for now, she is focused on her quest for the crown. “Just by being here, it’s already revolutionary. I came from an island. Who would have thought that an island girl like me would make it to the Miss Universe Philippines stage, not just once, but twice,” she said.

Falconer is among the 69 aspirants who are hoping to succeed reigning Miss Universe Philippines Chelsea Manalo, who became the first-ever Miss Universe Asia titleholder in last year’s international competition held in Mexico.

The 2025 Miss Universe Philippines coronation show will be held at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City on May 2. The winner will represent the country in the 74th Miss Universe pageant in Thailand in November.