Chelsea Manalo wore this national costume in Miss Universe 2024 Prelims
The Miss Universe 2024 Preliminary Competitions took place on November 15 (PH time) and here is what Pinay beauty queen Chelsea Manalo wore for her National Costume.
It has been a tradition of Miss Universe to hold the preliminary competitions a few days before the coronation night. In prelims, each candidate will show their national costumes that represent their culture and something that symbolizes their countries.
This year, the panel of judges is composed of Dubai-based Filipino designer Michael Cinco, women empowerment advocate Gabriela Gonzalez, art collector Gary Nader, Austrian entrepreneur Eva Cavalli, star builder Emilio Estefan, Miss Universe Canada 2020 Nova Stevens, Colombian actress Fariana, and celebrity dentist Camila Guiribitey.
These prominent personalities will choose the Miss Universe 2024 winner and this starts from the preliminary competitions. This year, the crown is made in the Philippines.
Pageants in the Philippines are quite a big deal. Pinoy pageant fans and even past queens, like Miss Universe 2015 Pia Wurtzbach, have been expressing support for Chelsea Manalo.
For the national costume competition, Chelsea wore the outfit tagged as the “Hiraya”. In the Instagram post of Miss Universe Philippines about this, “Hiraya” means “sana” or “I hope” and “I wish.” The Pinay beauty queen showcased the the symbol that depicts the historical introduction of Christianization and Islam in the Philippines. This also showed the ties between the Philippines and Mexico, where this year’s pageant is held.
“Faith can navigate us through life. No matter what religion we believe in. If we pray for something, devote and give our faith and work for it, in God’s perfect time everything is possible. Despite all the hardships, chaos, roadblocks and redirection that we go through, believe that there is hope and Divine guidance from a Higher Being,” MUPH explained in the post.
Chelsea’s costume featured the traditional fabric of Inaul from the province of Sultan Kudarat and her accessories are like Tongkaling from Mindanao. Her natcos also featured Puni which is one of the most popular arts in Bulacan. It is a creative way of decorating using coconut fronds. Chelsea’s national costume is created by fashion designer Manny Halasan.