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LOS ANGELES - Forty minutes into her reign as Miss Universe, Miss Puerto Rico, Zuleyka Rivera Mendoza, collapsed during a news conference - and an official blamed a wardrobe malfunction.
"She's OK. She's fine," pageant representative Lark Anton said.
"She got dizzy. It's very hot up here. Her dress is tight - as you could see, it was beaded and heavy. She passed out."
The dress was made entirely of metal chains.
Anton said the 18-year-old - who fainted just minutes after being congratulated by pageant co-owner Donald Trump - "had plenty to eat today."
Tottering on high, spiky heels, the beauty queen listed to the side for about 10 seconds and then collapsed in the arms of pageant assistants on the stage of the Shrine Auditorium.
"Is there a nurse in the house? Can a nurse come to the stage?" the announcer asked.
But within a minute, Anton said, Mendoza was fine.
In fact, she was well enough to attend the "Coronation Ball," according to Trump and other guests.
Before fainting, Mendoza - who hopes to become a movie star - promised to carry out the work of the Miss Universe organization, helping those with AIDS.
"I want to tell those people there's always problems in life, but there's always possibilities to improve things," said Mendoza, who is from the coastal town of Salinas.
Miss USA Tara Conner came in fifth.
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