Iris Mittenaere felt ‘reborn’ in PHL when Pia crowned her

Like the beloved Miss Universe titleholder from the '90s Sushmita Sen, French beauty queen Iris Mittenaere shared that she treats the Philippines as her “second country.”

Iris was crowned by Pia Wurtzbach in the country earlier this year, on January 30, as Sen was crowned here by Dayanara Torres in 1994.

Iris Mittenaere between current Miss Universe Demi-Leigh and Miss Universe 2015 Pia Wurtzbach

Aside from her intense love for mangoes, Iris told the media during a press conference on Wednesday that she loves how much Filipinos love pageants.

She also feels very lucky in the country and is more than happy to be back. “It’s here that my life changed,” she said.

She added, “I was like born again when Pia put the crown on my head.”

Despite her short reign, Iris said that she fully intends to keep promoting her advocacy and working with Smile Train.

“I don’t have to be Miss Universe to make a difference; as Iris I can make a difference,” she said.

Iris returned to the Philippines this week joined by recently crowned Miss Universe Demi-Leigh Nel-Peters of South Africa and other candidates from the 66th Miss Universe pageant for a tour of the Philippines organized by the Department of Tourism. — LA, GMA News