What are Bianca Manalo’s chances in Miss Universe? Will she be our third Miss Universe after Margie Moran-Florendo and Gloria Diaz? If you ask me, it would take a miracle and lots of prayers for that to happen. Given her assets, though, she has great chances to make it as a finalist. Still, anything can happen. Winning in Miss Universe can be a case of being in the right time at the right place—and before a right set of judges.
Why am I seeing Miriam Quiambao in Pamela Bianca Manalo? Will history finally repeat itself for the Philippines on Monday in the Bahamas as 84 beautiful women from around the globe compete for the honor to be crowned Miss Universe 2009?
The intensity, stride, smile, stage presence, charm, confidence, and look of determination on Bianca’s face, she is like Miriam in many ways during the latter’s Miss Universe stint a decade ago, wherein the dusky beauty nearly got away with the crown by being declared first runner-up.
Therefore, I am really crossing my fingers that Bianca’s name will be among those semifinalists who will be called to take center stage come big night in the Bahamas. Hopefully, the 10-year drought in our Miss Universe campaign will come to an end. By drought, I mean our failure to make it to the circle of semifinalists since Miriam’s time. That is all I’m praying that Bianca will make it to the top 15, and fight anew from there.
Anyway, I have to give credit to the Bb. Pilipinas Charities Inc. for sending Bianca to Colombia before she headed to the Bahamas. In our last column, I expressed doubts over why she had to be sent to that Latin country for polishing when lately our bets who made a detour to that side of the planet hardly improved.
In Bianca’s case, it was different. If the circulated YouTube video that shows her undergoing a medical procedure to firm up her abs is to be believed, then this only shows that we now mean business. After all, Latin countries particularly Venezuela and Colombia have long been doing that. Also in Bb. Pilipinas, there had been lot of candidates, who before joining the country’s most prestigious beauty pageant underwent surgery. It’s just that I think as a predominantly Catholic nation, we still have conservative beliefs towards self-enhancement through cosmetic surgery that we don’t quickly admit having gone under the knife.
But Bianca, based on the video, did it and that’s very interesting. And unlike the previous self-improvement sessions in Colombia wherein our candidates were forced to get a tan to make them more Asian-looking, Bianca’s natural color—smooth white skin—remains.
So what are her chances come Monday? Will she be our third Miss Universe after Margie Moran-Florendo and Gloria Diaz? It would take a miracle and lots of prayers for that to happen, if you ask me.
To say that Bianca will make it as far as top 3 is very ambitious already especially with the very strong presence of the beauties from Venezuela, Mexico and Dominican Republic. Gosh, these girls are goddesses! Nevertheless, given Bianca’s assets, I say that she has great chances to make it as a finalist. But anything is possible. Winning can be a case of being in the right time at the right place—and before a right set of judges.
If I were to enumerate her plus points, her being a flight attendant for Philippine Airlines would definitely work in her favor as she is used to working with grace under pressure. So I’m expecting that she will survive the backbreaking rehearsals and other pageant-related activities. In fact, she really did great during the preliminaries. She nailed the swimsuit competition that beauty experts from around the globe are now keeping an eye on her and declaring her as the best Asian candidate in this year’s batch of candidates.
Another advantage of Bianca is her height. Standing tall at 5’10, she will never be dwarfed by the Latinas and other giants in the pageant. And as a model for fashion czar Pitoy Moreno, it’s safe to say that she may not be the best on the ramp but you can still trust her to sizzle on the catwalk.
The third advantage is that Bianca comes from a family of beauty queens; her elder sister Kate Manalo-Hernandez was Miss World 2002 finalist, while her aunt Nini Ramos Licaros was Miss International 1968 finalist. Having such kind of family has surely helped in developing that determination and ability to shine even amidst many beautiful girls. Used to the company of beautiful and competitive women growing up, why should she feel left out in the Bahamas?
By the way, unlike our previous Miss U representatives, I never heard Bianca deliver such overconfident statements as “I’ll bring home the crown” or “I’ll be the next Miss Universe.” All I heard from Bianca was that she will do her best. She also appealed for prayers that she will do well. For that, Bianca is already a winner in my heart.
Lastly and for me the most important asset of Bianca is her strong faith in God. I once read in Ricky Lo’s column in The Philippine Star that Bianca’s a devout Catholic. She and her pilot boyfriend would hear mass every morning before going to work and would visit the adoration chapel after work. Thus, I am sure Bianca will really have a great time at Miss Universe because aside from doing her best for her family, friends, and country, she is first and foremost doing it for God’s glory. By the way, that’s another thing she has in common with Miriam—being religious. Let God’s will be done then on Monday!
Good luck, Pamela Bianca Manalo. Go, go, go Philippines!
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