No more height requirement for Miss Universe Philippines: Miss Australia reacts

Looks like Filipinos aren’t the only ones happy to know that the height requirement for Miss Universe Philippines (MUP) candidates has been lifted.

On Monday, the MUP organization announced the qualifications for those eyeing to become the next beauty queen. To everyone’s surprise, it didn’t include a minimum height standard.

The “great news” reached Miss Universe Australia 2020 Maria Thattil who took her thoughts to Instagram on Wednesday.

“Well done [Miss Universe Philippines] for challenging exclusive beauty standards,” she wrote.

“The number of [centimeters] you stand tall doesn’t dictate your ability to be a leader and change maker. Less barriers to access for all women - here is to progress,” she continued.

Maria pointed to her experience in the recently concluded Miss Universe 2021 pageant to say that height shouldn’t hinder one from joining beauty competitions.

“Miss Universe is a powerful global ambassador. All the delegates are too, and have the opportunity to ignite global change for good,” she wrote.

“Look at me - at 5’3”, I did exactly that. And I did it as the shortest candidate in my cohort, one of the shortest in MU’s seven decade history and in the top 10,” she added.

READ: Rabiya Mateo bows out of 69th Miss Universe, fails to make it to the Top 10

According to Maria, her team has always encouraged her to treat her height not as a “barrier,” but as “power.”

With this, she would like other Miss Universe organizations across the globe to do the same.

“With the MU organization not imposing a height requirement, I’d love to see other national organizations follow suit,” she said.

In the end of her post, Maria included the hashtags #HeightIsNoBarrier and #Inclusivity.

Apart from her gorgeous-looking photos, the Australian beauty queen also shared some netizens’ comments saying how she served as an “inspiration.”

The Miss Universe Philippines opened its applications for aspiring queens last month. – Franchesca Viernes/RC, GMA News