Miss Culpo must have been considered one of the most beautiful Miss Universe contestants of all time by the judges, given that she tripped over her dress during the evening gown competition and still managed to walk away with the ultimate prize. Americans assumed their girl was done-for after the slip, but she battled back in the interview round and was crowned the first Stateside Miss Universe in 15 years.

As rock-pop band Train were performing at the event, Culpo walked on stage but tripped on the fabric of her flowing gown. Somehow, the Rhode Island native kept her composure and recovered from the error. Later in the evening, she was crowned Miss Universe 2012 and spoke to fans on Twitter about the trip, "I hope my little slip last night in evening gown competition will inspire everyone this year competing! It's okay to mess up. You're human!" she said. 

Culpo seemingly came from nowhere to win this year's prize, and initially stunned her professional musician parents by competing in the Miss Rhode Island pageant last year. On that occasion, she rented a $25 dress (with a hole in the back) though still won the competition. In an official video created to give Americans the chance to get to know their beauty queen, Culpo explained that she had a "weird" taste in movies, saying, "I like anything from anime, foreign films, documentaries, just the stranger movies, I like regular ones too, but I like to explore." 

Check out our photos of the new Miss Universe, Olivia Culpo.