MANILA, Philippines — Miss Vietnam H’Hen Niê expressed gratitude to her Filipino trainer after finishing in the Top 5 of the prestigious competition.
On her Instagram account, H’hen thanked her staff in the pageant, especially her trainer Anjo Santos who she described as her teacher.
“From the bottom of my heart, Thank you very much, My Teacher Anjo Santos,” she wrote.
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Anjo was proud of Miss Vietnam for her accomplishment being the first Vietnamese who finished that far in the competition.
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"She was stunning, brave, and queenly but most of all down to earth. Naiyak po ako, siyempre, nagalak... Natuwa 'cause H'Hen has also a little mix of Pinoy blood," he told Pep.
"I handled her for a month. I covered poise, stance, and catwalk, and make-up tutorial. Then I designed a pasarela fit for her and the gown she will wear (the one with twist 360 turn)."
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He recalled that he was hired to train H’Hen through the national director of Miss Universe Vietnam.
"I was taken because I trained Vietnamese beauties since 2014 po. Then through the national director of Miss Universe Vietnam, my friend, they hired me to train her. So yung mga kaibigan ko din sa Ho Chi Minh City na mga close ko ay nag-support to help kaya naging team po kami," he said.