Filipina named Miss Universe Canada

MANILA, Philippines - The coronation night of Miss Universe Canada in Toronto on Saturday mistakenly awarded the title to Ontario's Denise Garrido, when it was Filipino-born Riza Santos who should have been crowned.

Miss Universe officials announced Sunday morning that there has been a typographical error in the tabulation of results, and runner-up Santos rightfully holds the title.

"A typo was discovered in the top 5 entries, which significantly impacted the final results of the competition," Beauties of Canada said in a statement.

The 26-year-old Santos, who served in the Canadian military and took up mechanical engineering prior to joining the beauty pageant, said in a television interview that she was at first disappointed when Garrido's name was called out, though she was "genuinely happy" for her.

"I don't feel like I missed out," Santos said, referring to the moment of coronation aired live on Canada's national television.

Santos will compete with fellow Filipino Ariella Arida, who was crowned Miss Universe Philippines in April.

Related story: Ariella Arida is Bb. Pilipinas-Universe 2013

Though having spent her lifetime in Canada, Santos was born of a father from Bulacan and a mother from Bataan.

Santos had appeared in the local television reality show Pinoy Big Brother Celebrity Edition in 2007. - Camille Diola