What. a. show. The Miss Universe Philippines 2024 ended with the crowning of a new queen. After more than five hours, Chelsea Manalo was recognized as MUPH 2024 at the SM Mall of Asia Arena, in the early hours of Thursday morning, May 23.
Fifty-three beauty queens made it to the Miss Universe Philippines stage and showcased their empowered selves and stunning looks. Everyone manifested the lasting sisterhood that the pageant also advocates for.
The coronation night livestream started at around 8:30PM, and Chelsea was named the winner close to 1:30AM. The long run time means there were a lot of memorable moments worth looking back to!
LOOK: All The Best Moments During Miss Universe Philippines 2024 Coronation Night
1. Michelle Dee and Marina Summers' Opening Stage for Miss Universe Philippines 2024
This year's opening act was such an experience! Miss Universe Philippines 2023 titleholder Michelle Dee was a vision as she strutted on the stage alongside her Miss Universe sisters.
But more than that, Drag queen Marina Summers made the grandest entrance, and netizens think it's the best one throughout MUPH history! Marina performed her iconic "I'm A Filipina" rendition of Maymay Entrata's "Amakabogera" song. All the MUPH candidates gave their all as they danced with Marina—and it was such a magnificent performance!
Over on Instagram, Marina and Michelle actually bonded. Michelle shared a video of her and Marina doing a photoshoot together. In the video, Michelle was cutely princess-carrying Marina. She even captioned, "Carrying the summer heat to the Universe... Literally."
2. Gabbi Garcia's wonderful hosting stint
It's not just the candidates who gave their all throughout the night, but also Gabbi Garcia. The Kapuso actress had a *stunning* hosting stint for #MUPH2024. Literally stunning as she exhibited not just one, but ~four~ outfits last night!
Gabbi took the liberty to share some details about her looks on Instagram. Her first 'fit was a beautiful pink strapless dress made by Filipino designer Mark Bumgarner. Her third look was designed by Mara Chua — a gold corset that highlighted Gabbi's figure. We're still waiting for Gabbi to spill the deets about her second look, by the way!
But let's not forget her fourth look for the night. Take note that Gabbi started the evening with her luscious long locks and ended it with a completely different hairstyle. By the end of the night, she sported a medium-length bob that fell perfectly to her shoulders. She was wearing an Anthony Ramirez black dress that featured a silhouette trail, adding more sexiness to the overall ensemble!
NGL, it felt like Gabbi was also competing there as a beauty queen. She handled the Miss Universe PH stage like a pro. She exuded charisma, energy, and focus as a host. Netizens believe that she should be a regular host, or better yet, a Miss Universe Philippines candidate in the future!
3. Swimsuit competition featuring the amazing Lola Amour
As the Miss Universe hosts said during the show, it rained confidence and beauty last night, especially during the swimsuit competition. OPM act Lola Amour gave more energy and life to the stage with their vibrant hit song "Raining in Manila." Surprisingly, Lola Amour's MUPH2024 version fits perfectly with the way the candidates sported their swimsuit looks with elegance and a vibrant attitude!
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4. The Top 10 Q&A
Alright, so the Top 10 Question & Answer portion was squeezed into the announcement of the Top 10 delegates. Nonetheless, we think the questions allowed the judges to see more of each candidate's personality and wit.
This is because most of the questions had a more personal touch. One of the questions thrown was: "Tell me a juicy secret you have never told anybody else before."
TBH, if it was us answering that question in front of the whole Universe, we might've struggled to spill our deepest, darkest, secret. But Miss Cainta Stacey Gabriel answered that question with humor and powered through the night! She became Miss Universe Philippines 2024's first runner-up.
READ ALSO: Miss Universe Philippines 2024: Top 10, Top 5 Q&A Transcript
5. Michelle Dees's final walk as Miss Universe Philippines 2023
It was an emotional night for Michelle as she crowned her successor. Donning her Apo Whang Od-inspired gown crafted by Mark Bumgarner, Michelle elegantly walked down the Miss Universe PH stage one last time.
Taking it all in, Michelle expressed her preparedness to end her pageant journey with grace. Moments before she greeted the MOA Arena crowd with her iconic, "Hello, Filipinas!" she posted a short but sweet farewell message on Instagram.
She wrote, "The final moments of a transformational reign and a closing chapter of an amazing 7-year pageant journey. #FILIPINAS maraming salamat."
6. The evening gown competition left us with our jaws on the floor.
It was midnight when it finally happened, but Thai actor Win Metawin did not show any signs of tiredness at all. He performed during the evening gown competition with incredible confidence!
We can't get enough of the Top 10 evening gowns, though. So we're listing down here each candidate's designer, for the records!
1. Miss Cebu Kris Janson
Designer: Harvey Cenit
2. Miss Iloilo Alexie Brooks
Designer: Rian Fernandez
3. Miss Bulacan Chelsea Manalo
Designer: Manny Halasan
4. Miss Taguig Christi McGarry
Designer: Mark Bumgarner
5. Miss Bacoor Victoria Velasquez Vincent
Designer: Furne Amato
6. Miss Pampanga Cyrille Payumo
Designer: Rich Sabinian
7. Miss Quezon Province Ahtisa Manalo
Designer: Michael Cinco
8. Miss Cainta Stacey Gabriel
Designer: Val Taguba
9. Miss Zambales Anita Rose Gomez
Designer: Leo Almodal
10. Miss Baguio Tarah Valencia
Designer: Glademir Echavarre
7. The much-awaited Top 5 Final Question & Answer portion
MUPH 2024 was admittedly quite long. We feel like the wait was quite grueling for the viewers, but most especially for the candidates. But they all maintained their composure and their focus onstage from start to finish.
With the final Q&A, the top five finalists—namely, Chelsea Manalo, Ahtisa Manalo, Stacey Gabriel, Tarah Valencia, and Christi McGarry—showcased their intelligence and inspirational advocacies by answering their chosen questions. They all came to win.
8. The Crowning Moment
Hailing from Bulacan, Chelsea has been joining pageants since she was young. She looked every bit a queen as she accepted her crown from her predecessor, Michelle Dee. Now, Chelsea's time to shine has come and we're all so thrilled for her!
Chelsea will be representing the Philippines in the Miss Universe global competition in Mexico this year, where Miss Universe 2023 Sheynnis Palacios of Nicaragua will crown her successor at the end of the event.
Congratulations, Chelsea!
