Back in 1996, Chris Celis represented us in the first Mr. World competition
Chris long after Mr. World 1996
For today’s Throwback Thursday post, I thought it best to feature the very first Mr. World Philippines who was named as such back in 1996 and represented the country in the inaugural edition of Mr. World held in Istanbul, Turkey.
Christopher Celis, then a 20 year-old senior student of UST, went to the host city armed with fair-to-medium mestizo Filipino looks, a constant smile and a background in the Fine Arts he had hoped would be put to good use as a Talent in the competition. Being a painter who trained under the renowned Betsy Frias, he wanted to show his skills in transforming a blank canvas to life. Apart from such, a prior exposure to folk dancing allowed him to show his flair in this area.
However, he was outshadowed by the far more hunkier and bulkier bets from Europe and Latin America. The Belgian rep, Tom Nuyens, bagged the title, with Gabriel Soto Borja-Diaz of Mexico and the host delegate Karahan Çantay completing the Top 3. He also missed the Top 10 cut during finals night.
To give you an idea of how Mr. World 1996 looked like, watch the video below showing the winning moments of the male pageant.
courtesy of video for pageant lovers
In retrospect, it was a pleasant experience for Christopher, give or take a setback or two. He went home from the contest with precious memories and friendships that stayed long ever since. :-)
