Ahtisa Manalo recalls her struggle to walk with right foot after Miss Cosmo injury

“I honestly don’t know. If anyone would be mad, it has to be me,” Ahtisa Manalo said, as she revisited the ankle injury she sustained during her Miss Cosmo experience and the backlash she received from its fans afterward. 

Two years after competing in Miss Cosmo’s inaugural edition, Manalo opened up about the ankle injury she sustained after a “technical incident,” in an “Almost Honest” podcast interview on Wednesday, April 1.

The topic came up after host and fellow beauty queen Kylie Verzosa asked Manalo about the backlash she received from Miss Cosmo fans while her injury was being reported to the public. She eventually finished in the Top 10. 

“I don’t know. I honestly don’t know. If anyone would be mad, it has to be me. I’m the one who, until now, can’t properly walk on my right foot. It’s hard for me to walk. It’s not just a sprain,” she recalled. 

During her Miss Cosmo 2024 stint, Vietnamese media reported that the stage for the global tilt collapsed days before the preliminary competition and coronation night. However, it remains unclear if the beauty queen’s injury directly stemmed from the technical issue or if other candidates suffered injuries as well.

In Manalo’s case, she thought that she simply sprained her ankle, but her injury turned out worse. “After I went to the hospital, after the whole accident happened, I thought I just sprained my ankle.”

“But it has already been a day or two, and I couldn’t step on it without hurting [myself],” she continued. “They brought me to the doctor, they did MRI and stuff, and apparently, there’s fluid that seeped [into] my bone marrow and stuff. And I was supposed not to put weight on it.”

The beauty queen was then required to wear crutches instead of heels; however, she stressed that she could not follow the doctor’s orders because she had to compete in the pageant.

“The doctor asked me to wear crutches for 20 days, and I said, ‘That’s not possible, I’m competing in a pageant.’ Honestly, at that time, I thought, ‘What am I doing? This is already my health that is at risk because of all these things,’” she said. 

“I also reminded myself it’s already so close to the finals and prelims, I wouldn’t want to quit so close to the competition,” she further shared.

Miss Cosmo founder finally takes responsibility

Hours after the interview, the founder of Miss Cosmo, Henry Tran Viet Bao Hoang, finally addressed the incident himself in a lengthy Instagram Story. He also stated that he respects Manalo’s side of the story and clarified that he never thought of the latter being “dishonest” about her experience.

“I have never, and will never, think that Ahtisa was dishonest about herself or her experience at Miss Cosmo 2024. I fully respect her personal perspective on what happened,” he said.

Henry also acknowledged that there was “indeed an issue in the stage setup,” and while no contestant was harmed, the situation was nonetheless “chaotic,” leading to injuries to some candidates and emotional strain throughout the process.

“There was indeed an issue during the stage setup and rehearsal. I want to clarify that no contestant was directly harmed by the equipment or the stage itself. However, as the situation became chaotic, some contestants had to move out quickly in high heels,” he recalled. “Unfortunately, a few were injured in the process, and some were also affected emotionally.”

Henry stressed that the pageant organization should take responsibility for the incident, while reminding its fans not to cause a divide between themselves and the candidates.

“If there is any responsibility to be taken, it is OURS — the Miss Cosmo organization. We have learned from this, and we will continue to improve. I have apologized, and will continue to apologize, for any negative experiences,” he said. 

“I believe sharing personal feelings is not wrong. And I truly hope that this doesn’t turn into a divide between the fans of the competition and any contestant. I hope we can remain one, not two sides,” he continued.

To note, the Miss Cosmo organization said that there “were no significant damages” and they prioritized the candidates’ safety at the time of the incident. However, Henry himself didn’t speak up about Manalo’s injury or the backlash she received after it became public.

Manalo is currently the reigning Miss Universe Philippines and is set to pass her crown to her successor on May 1. She signed a contract with Sparkle GMA last March. /ra