During the Miss Universe contest, Ahtisa Manalo revealed who she regarded to be her strongest rival.
In an interview with Boy Abunda, Ahtisa named Stephany Abasali, Miss Venezuela, as her top competitor.
“I would usually see Venezuela kasi feeling ko meron din akong konting kasi nung Miss International, Venezuela was the winner so feeling ko in the back of my head meron akong natitirang feelings na okay baka si Venezuela na naman this time tapos first runner-up na naman ako, so siya ‘yung napapansin lagi ko talaga,” she told us.
She went further: “And it helps na napakaganda ni Venezuela, para siyang manika… As in ang ganda niya talaga.”
In the same interview, Ahtisa addressed claims that she refused the Miss Universe Asia title. She stated that the title was never offered to her.
“It was never offered to me in the first place. No… Ang nangyari nga diyan… nag-assume pa nga ako eh. Even before in-offer sa akin, sabi ko kay mama J (Jonas Gaffud), ‘Ma, ‘pag nag offer sila, huwag na nating tanggapin.’ Pero inassume ko lang. Hindi naman nila inoffer talaga,” she told me.
Ahtisa went further: “So I don’t know where the rumors started that it was officially offered to me but I don’t know anymore what the talks were between mama J and the organization but on my behalf, it was never offered to me.”
Ahtisa finished third runner-up in the recently concluded Miss Universe contest.
Following the pageant, Ahtisa went down memory lane and released a video of her performance from the competition. “After 18 years, I have finally arrived at my ultimate destination: to represent the Philippines on the Miss Universe stage,” she wrote in an Instagram post on November 23.
The Filipino beauty queen also stated that she would continue to work with the non-profit organization Alon Akademie following her Miss Universe journey.
