Vive la France!

MANILA, Philippines - Iris Mittenaere outshone 85 other candidates to win the Miss Universe crown yesterday morning, becoming the second woman from France to wear the crown in over 60 years.

The 23-year-old dental surgery student succeeded Filipina Pia Wurtzbach following a made-for-television spectacle free of last year’s dramatic mix-up but with a dash of political controversy as the finalists spoke out on the refugee crisis and other hot-button global issues.

The last time France won the Miss Universe pageant was in 1953 when Christane Martel brought home the title.

The Philippines’ Maxine Medina made it to the Top 6, but failed to advance to the Top 3, which included Misses Haiti and Colombia.

Wearing a shimmering, sequined cream-colored gown, Mittenaere appeared shocked when it was announced that she beat first runner-up Raquel Pilissier from Haiti. Pillisier has Filipino lineage from her mother’s side, GMA News said.

“I was very surprised. I’m always touching the crown, oh my god, (it’s on my head), I don’t believe it. It was a big surprise. Every step was a surprise. I wanted to cry in every step. I feel blessed, really,” Mittenaere later admitted in a press conference.

She believes that her triumph will raise awareness on the pageant owned by the US-based talent agency WME/IMG.

“I think France really needs a (Miss) Universe. As you know French people really love beauty pageants, but they don’t really know Miss Universe because never do our country win. So, this way, a lot of people will know and will watch Miss Universe. I’m very proud to win this crown.”

Like Wurtzbach, the 24-year-old from the northern French town of Lille wants to actively push for her personal advocacies, particularly children and education, during her year-long reign.

“I followed Pia this year, I saw all the things that she did. I want to do that also, I want to help people, I want to understand people, I want to travel and meet people, that’s why this is a dream for me to be Miss Universe,” she said. “I really want to be a good Miss Universe.”

Wurtzbach, in a tweet, congratulated her successor: “I’m so happy with the results! Truly a deserving winner! Je t’aime!”

According to her official bio, Mittenaere has two years to go before she becomes a dentist. She enjoys extreme sports, traveling the world and cooking new French dishes. She volunteers at children’s charitable organizations like Bienvenue-Tongasoa and Les Bonnes Fées.

She’s also someone who enjoys #nomakeup days more. “When you join Miss Universe, you have to be confident. I’m confident with no makeup. We don’t need make-up. We don’t need surgery. I just need confidence. I don’t need makeup to love myself.”

Nevertheless, as Miss Universe, she stands to receive a glamorous prize package. She’ll enjoy a year-long salary; luxury accommodations in a New York City apartment including living expenses; a one-year supply of hair care products, tools, make-up products; a shoe wardrobe, gym membership, a modeling portfolio by leading fashion photographers; dermatology and skincare services; a professional health and nutrition consultation; dental services; professional representation by The Miss Universe Organization; extensive travel representing sponsors and charitable partners; access to various events including casting opportunities, movie premieres, screenings, Broadway shows and launch parties; and personal appearance wardrobe and styling by the official Miss Universe Organization fashion stylist.

Mittenaere expressed her gratitude for the “exceptional” reception she received from Filipinos.

Apart from her crowning moment, she cited her visit to Cebu as the most unforgettable experience during her three-week stay in the country.

“Thank you to all the Filipinos. You are really exceptional. It was amazing, I think all of the girls in the pageant love you, really.”

New format

It didn’t go unnoticed among pageant fans that change has come to the Miss Universe format. For the first time, the semifinalists were grouped into a Top 13, 9, 6 and then 3.

The question-and-answer skills of the candidates were immediately put to test as soon as the Top 13 – Kenya, Indonesia, USA, Mexico, Peru, Panama, Colombia, Philippines, Canada, Brazil, France, Haiti and Thailand – was announced. Thailand got the 13th slot because of the 100-million online votes cast in her favor.

The show also had its ample share of “emotional” moments with the features on the backgrounds of candidates, wherein they talked about their tough life and paid tribute to their mothers.

During the final Q&A for the Top 3, who were asked to name an experience in their life that they failed in and the lesson they learned from it, France’s answer via an interpreter was called out as wrongly translated.

French-Filipino actress Solenn Heussaff tweeted: “French translator said: When I missed my first casting. But she really said 1st year of Medicine school.”

Mittenaere later on clarified in the post-pageant interview that what she meant was indeed med school, saying she had thought she did not pass on the first year because she could not find her name on the list of passers. She, however, stressed that “I think my interpreter was very good.”

Earlier in the Top 6, she was asked to comment on Europe’s border control issue on refugees. Mittenaere said, “The countries should have the right to open or close their borders... In France, we want to have the most globalization that we can, we want to have the biggest exchange of people that we can. Maybe someday that will change, but now we have open borders. Having open borders allows us to travel more through the world and to find out more about what’s out there in the world.”

Meanwhile, the Philippines’ Medina climbed all the way to the Top 6, backed by the deafening cheers of the sold-out, hometown crowd at the MOA Arena.

For the first time, there was an interpreter on standby for the Filipino bet. In the lead-up to the coronation event, pageant-crazy netizens were urging Maxine to use an interpreter in order to express herself better. The question on the most significant change she has seen in the world in the last 10 years was translated into Tagalog.

But Maxine chose to answer in English: “In the last 10 years of being here in the world is that I saw the people bringing in one event like this in Miss Universe and it’s something big to us that we are one. As one nation, we are all together. Thank you. Maraming salamat po.”

Sushmita Sen, 1994 Miss Universe and one of the judges in this year’s 65th edition, noted that the Q&A portion often decides the winner.

The question was also asked on the Facebook page of this paper, with netizens offering possible answers like “social media” as well as presidents Duterte and Trump as some of the biggest changes that happened to the world in recent times.

Nevertheless, there was an outpour of encouraging words for Maxine on social media despite her not advancing to the Top 3.

“This is the best show that I’ve ever done,” said MUO president Paula Shugart of the recently concluded pageant that reportedly cost more than P14 million to stage.

Shugart, whose father, a US pilot, was stationed in Subic during the Vietnam war, profusely thanked their local partners from the private sector led by former governor Chavit Singson and the government through Tourism Secretary Wanda Teo “for making it happen.”