JonBenét Ramsey’s dad shares regrets over beauty pageants on her 33rd birthday

The father of tragic child beauty queen JonBenét Ramsey has spoken out about who his daughter would have grown up to be and the regrets he carries with him.

The murder of the six-year-old, who was found beaten and strangled on December 26, 1996, remains a mystery.

She was found in her family home in Boulder Colorado in the US and now her father has spoken out about his little girl on what would have been her 33rd birthday.

READ MORE: Ex-beauty queen 'sent hitman pic of husband marked "kill him" in murder for hire plot'

Speaking to the US Sun, 79-year-old John Ramsey explained how JonBenét had been “a little different” to his other children, of which he had five.

"All my kids are smart, but she was smart. We knew she would be something special in life we just weren't sure what,” he said.

"I was worried she was going to run off to Hollywood one day, and that wouldn't be good from my perspective.

"But she was so much more mature than the typical six-year-old in terms of how she thought and the kinds of questions she'd ask and she became very spiritual from an early age.

"She was very much an old soul."

The father ruminated: “The world may have lost the person who may have contributed to the cure of cancer, or maybe she would've just been a really wonderful mother who raised wonderful children.

"But that opportunity has gone. It's gone for her, it's gone for us, and it's gone for the world."

Some 27 years after her death, John still remembers his daughter as a tomboy who loved to be outside and expressed his regrets about the beauty pageants.

He’s spoken out about the “attention” that being involved in pageants can bring.

He explained: "I didn't like the costumes and stuff… but I didn't say anything because [JonBenét's mum]Patsy and JonBenét were having such a good time together.

"I thought these pageants were just attended by moms and dads and grandparents, and so I didn't really worry about that exposure.

"But we later learned there were people attending these pageants that had no business being there: paedophiles.

"So that was not a good idea at all […] but we were so naïve."

John said he told his daughter to focus on the “talent” sections of the competitions as that was “worth doing” but, gut-wrenchingly, he missed her final performance.

Recounting one of his final memories of her, he said: "I used to go to them when I could.

"On what I think must have been her last pageant, I was late and missed her performance.

"And [after] she came running through with the medal and said, 'Daddy, look what I won for you!' and it was the all-talent winner.

"She was so proud of that.

"[…] And shortly after she'd be gone."

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