Ahtisa Manalo

Maria Ahtisa Manalo (born May 27, 1997) is a Filipino model and beauty pageant titleholder who was appointed to represent Quezon at the Miss Universe Philippines 2024 pageant.

Manalo was born on May 27, 1997, in Candelaria, Quezon, Philippines, to a Filipino-Spanish mother and a Finnish-Swedish father.

She attended the Manuel S. Enverga University and graduated with a degree in accountancy.

Manalo was previously crowned Binibining Pilipinas International 2018 and represented the Philippines at the Miss International 2018 competition where she finished first runner-up.

Manalo competed at Binibining Pilipinas 2018, held on March 18, 2018, at the Araneta Coliseum.

While not viewed as a frontrunner throughout the run-up to the pageant, she garnered media attention after her performance at the pageant's press presentation, to which Rappler noted was "her peak".

During the final question and answer round, she was asked: "How should a beauty queen respond to ruthless criticism?"

Manalo responded:

"'A beauty queen should always respond to criticism constructively. We beauty queens are public figures, and we put ourselves in the position to be judged. But nonetheless, we should always.. we should always filter which... which comments we should accept and what we should not.'"

At the end of the pageant, Manalo was crowned Binibining Pilipinas International 2018 by outgoing titleholder Maria Angelica de Leon.

At age 20, Manalo was the youngest winner that edition.

Winning the title of Binibining Pilipinas International 2018 made Manalo the country's delegate to the Miss International 2018 pageant, held at the Tokyo Dome City Hall on November 9, 2018.

In the run-up to the competition, Manalo was identified as a favorite to win the contest from her performance during the pre-pageant activities.

At the coronation night, Manalo competed with a gown by Filipino designer Michael Cinco.

During the Top 8 final speech, Manalo emphasized her eagerness to lead despite her youth, and vowed to continue being "the voice of the youth in showing that nothing is impossible with hard work and determination".

At the end of the event, Manalo finished as first runner-up to Mariem Velazco of Venezuela.

At the end of her reign as Binibining Pilipinas International, Manalo crowned Bea Magtanong as her successor at the Binibining Pilipinas 2019 pageant.

Following her finish at the Miss International pageant, Manalo has been identified as a strong potential candidate for future national pageants.

In an interview with the Philippine Entertainment Portal on August 17, 2019, following her reign as Binibining Pilipinas International, Manalo stated that she has been running two cafés in Australia—Cafe Noun and Call Me Harris.

Manalo also played the role in the creation and expansion of food brands such as Koomi, Oh My Greek, and Zig Foods.

On January 31, 2020, she filed her application for the Miss Universe Philippines 2020 pageant, however, she would shortly withdraw the application due to medical issues.

Her withdrawal prompted accusations of her staging a publicity stunt, though, she has clarified that she filed the application as late as possible as she was unsure of her decision to compete.

On January 27, 2024, the Miss Universe Philippines – Quezon Province pageant announced Manalo's appointment as the delegate of the province to the Miss Universe Philippines 2024 pageant.

Manalo is an LGBTQ advocate.

An entrepreneur, Manalo works with the Alon Akademie organization, which focuses on enriching the "global citizenship, social skills, and entrepreneurial mindset" of children.