Chelsea Fernandez is joining Miss Universe Philippines 2025 pageant after all
After breaking the hearts of many of her fans earlier by announcing that she will not join the search for Samar’s Miss Universe Philippines delegate, Chelsea Fernandez will take part in the national tilt after all.
In a social media post on Jan. 11, she said, “[i]t is with regret that I announce my decision not to join in the Miss Universe Philippines – Samar. But I am sending all my love and best wishes to my fellow-Waraynon queens on this journey. [hands forming a heart emoji]”
But on Wednesday evening, Feb. 12, the pageant veteran was proclaimed as Sultan Kudarat’s official representative in the 2025 Miss Universe Philippines pageant. She was presented at the province’s provincial capitol in the town of Isulan.
Fernandez has a storied journey in pageantry. Her first taste of a national competition was via the 2019 Miss Philippines Earth contest, where she was a frontrunner and took home the Miss Philippines-Water title.
Her pageant journey continued even during the lockdown imposed because or the COVID-19 pandemic. She topped the online Miss ECQ contest in 2020, and won the Miss Bikini Philippines crown in a virtual competition held in 2021.
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Fernandez joined the 2022 Binibining Pilipinas pageant, where she was crowned as the Philippines’ representative to The Miss Globe competition. She advanced to the semifinals and topped the “Head-to-Head” challenge in the international tilt.
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As in the previous years, the 2025 Miss Universe Philippines pageant has become an assembly of national and international titleholders from different organizations.
Among those joining Fernandez in the national tilt is her fellow Bb. Pilipinas queen Chanel Olive Thomas, who was a finalist in the 2017 Miss Supranational pageant.
Also joining are 2017 Reina Hispanoamericana Teresita Ssen “Winwyn” Marquez, 2023 Miss Earth-Air Yllana Aduana, 2022 Miss Universe Philippines second runner-up and 2019 Reina Hispanoamericana Quinta Finalista Katrina Llegado, and 2019 Mutya ng Pilipinas-Tourism International Tyra Goldman.
They, and about 70 more aspirants, will vie for the Miss Universe Philippines crown currently held by Chelsea Manalo, who became the first Miss Universe Asia titleholder in the international pageant last year.