The 2015 Miss Universe Pageant (Photo : Getty Images)
Contrary to expectations that the gaffe of Miss Universe 2015 host Steve Harvey would make Miss Colombia Ariadna Gutierrez bitter and a become an emotional wreck because of extreme humiliation, the real first runner-up is okay.
E! News reports that despite the roller coaster ride and disappointing experience of wearing the Miss Universe crown for a few minutes only, the Latina beauty queen posted on Instagram on Tuesday night heartfelt words. "After the storm comes the calm. I want to thank each and everyone of you who have sent messages of support and strength," Gutierrez writes.
She continues, "Every one of you has become an incredible human being in my book and I am the most fortunate and thankful for having the support not only from one country but from the whole entire world."
Her ability to go beyond embarrassment shows that the apprehension expressed by Colombia's consul general to New York, Isabel Nieto, over Ariadne's mental health, while genuine, is unfounded. Nieto thinks it would take Gutierrez some time before she could recover from the experience.
Public relations and marketing experts advise Miss Colombia to turn this negative incident into a positive one by tapping her unexpected global popularity and empathy from beauty contests enthusiasts into a flourishing career on television and the advertising.
At present though, Gutierrez is now spending more time with the family and shying away from media in Miami since the Sunday night snafu, reports Entertainment Tonight. Her posting on Instagram of her photos still wearing the $300,000 crown has been interpreted by CBS as not yet moving on, particularly with Ariadna captioning the photo: "Forever your Miss Universe! Colombia!"
To show she has moved on from the storm created by Harvey, Gutierrez also congratulated the real winner, Miss Philippines Pia Wurtzbach. She writes, "The happiness that you must be feeling must be incredible. Life continues and in the future we will find out why things happen the way they happen."
