u/AnthroExplorer88

Born in Manila as Maria Angela Beata Alandy-Dy Recto, she comes from a Filipino family with partial Chinese ancestry. Nicknamed "Bea", she has background in ballet and is a business administration graduate of the University of the Philippines. She started her modeling career in 1986 by appearing in fashion shows, where she was noted for her elegance and oriental beauty. By 1987, she was a finalist in the Philippine Search for the Super Model of the World. In 1989, she became a board member of PMAP (Professional Models Association of the Philippines) and was recruited to represent Manila in the Miss Chinese International pageant held in Hong Kong. She is also close friends with her model colleagues in PMAP; their clique is named "The Shet Girls", composed of Bea, Tweetie de Leon, Apples Aberin, Malou Gonzalez and Myrza Sison.

With the recent incident where a foreign-born, half Filipino pageant contestant implying that full-blood Filipinos are not good enough, I remember a news report back in 2018.

After the victory of Catriona Gray as Miss Universe 2018, former titleholders Gloria Diaz and Margie Moran were interviewed in a news show where one of the topics discussed was the advantage of Philippine delegates who came from mixed-race marriages. They discussed that recent Philippine delegates who came from interracial relationships tend to be taller and have more experiences.

Gloria remarked that among the 4 Miss Universe titleholders from the Philippines, it was only her who looked native as the 3 others Margie, Pia and Catriona all came from mixed-race backgrounds.

https://youtu.be/Uo4xMyDHWd4?si=MeCGyQO3uKZ30GFW

Let’s discuss the ancestral backgrounds of our Miss Universe titleholders:

Miss Universe 1969, Gloria Diaz, got her native morena beauty from her parents, who are both full-blood Filipinos. Her father, Jaime Diaz y Baltazar, is of Ilocano heritage from La Union. Her mother, Teresa Aspillera y Colobon, is of Bicolano descent and was born in Manila.

Miss Universe 1973, Margie Moran, has strong mestiza features inherited from her parents, both of whom are of mixed ancestry. Her father, Francis Moran y Gonzalez, is from Pangasinan and has Irish and Spanish roots. Meanwhile, her mother, Rosario Roxas y McIlvain, has ancestry from Capiz and also has Spanish and American roots.

Miss Universe 2015, Pia Wurtzbach, is a product of an interracial marriage and thus exhibit Eurasian features. Her German father, Klaus Uwe Wurtzbach, is from Stuttgart. Her Filipino mother, Cheryl Santiago Alonzo, is originally from Malabon and is of Tagalog descent.

Miss Universe 2018, Catriona Gray, comes from a multicultural background and is of mixed ancestry. Her Australian father, Ian Gray, is of Scottish descent. Meanwhile, her Filipino mother, Normita Ragas Magnayon, is of Bicolano heritage from Albay.