QUITO, June 2: Miss Australia Jennifer Hawkins, a 20-year-old choreographer and avid surfer, won the Miss Universe title in Ecuador on Tuesday over a field of beauty queens who strut across a dazzling set in swimsuits and shimmering gowns.

Jennifer Hawkins, a model whose wavy blond hair and slim-fitted gold gown glittered during the award ceremony, aspires to work her way from the catwalks to eventually win a job in television.

"This is very new to me and I'm very excited," the blue-eyed winner told reporters after she had received the sparkling diamond-encrusted crown as the new queen. It is the second time an Australian has won the pageant since it began in 1952. The other Australian victory belonged to Kerry Anne Wells in 1972.

Shandi Finnessey of the United States, a 25-year-old graduate school student who has published a children's book, took second place, while Miss Puerto Rico Alba Reyes, 22, an aspiring doctor, came in third.

Hawkins beat a field of 80 candidates who in the ceremony on the outskirts of Ecuador's capital city paraded in tiny tropical-print bikinis across a set that included an artificial rainshower and an illuminated swimming pool.

Showing a free spirit, a smiling Hawkins professed her love for the beach and outdoor sports. In a pageant question on what period in history she would prefer to live if she had her pick, Hawkins quickly answered "this time," given the abundant opportunities that exist for women.

The winner takes an ample wardrobe and a 45,000 dollars scholarship at a New York film school and will participate in events to benefit charitable organizations. Presenters had said more than 600 million people around the world would watch the pageant, which is produced jointly by US tycoon Donald Trump and NBC Television.

In the days prior to the contest, Miss Bolivia Gabriela Oviedo caused a furor after she called herself a tall white woman and not one of the short Indian peasants for which she said her nation is widely known. Several Bolivians called for her resignation over the remarks, for which Oviedo later apologized. -Reuters