New Miss Universe was Once a Kidnap Victim

Today she is on top of the Universe, but newly crowned Miss Universe 2008, Miss Venezuela has revealed that she was once kidnapped, reports News.com.au.

Glowing in a pink evening dress, Miss Venezuela, Dayana Mendoza, has been crowned Miss Universe 2008 after beating the world's most beautiful ladies from 80 countries.

The final 15 contestants included Australia, Venezuela, Kosovo, Mexico, Vietnam, South Africa, Japan, the Dominican Republic, Italy, Colombia, Russia, Hungary, the Czech Republic, the United States and Spain.

Hosted by Jerry Springer and British pop star "Scary Spice" Mel B, the ceremony saw Mendoza being awarded cash, a tiara and other prizes. She not only gets to travel the world for a year, meeting dignitaries and charities, but will also be residing in a comfortable base of a deluxe apartment in New York City.

About the kidnapping incident, Mendoza once said in an interview, "I was once kidnapped, in what in my country is known as an express kidnapping. It was a very hard experience. I learned to remain calm in a very stressful situation and to try to reach to the human part of our abductors."