A Bolivian beauty queen was stripped of her regalia days before she came forward about her pregnancy.
Joyce Prado, 22, took part in the Miss Universe pageant in Bangkok, Thailand last December, after being crowned Miss Bolivia 2018 and Miss Santa Cruz 2018.
However, Prado's modelling agency, Promociones Gloria, which also organises the national pageant, said in a statement that she had forfeited both titles for "breach of contract". The agency refused to go into further detail, citing a confidentiality clause.
A couple of days after the announcement, the 22-year-old gave a hint as to what could have been reason for her punishment. She revealed on Instagram that she and her boyfriend, Paraguayan model Rodrigo Gimenez, are expecting their first child.
"I want to share with you that I am the happiest woman in the world because my life is full of love, because together with the man of my dreams we are beginning to live the most beautiful stage of our lives," the mom-to-be wrote.
Miss Universe rules bear out the assumption that Prado's dethroning had to do with her pregnancy. The pageant's organisers require that the contestants be neither married nor pregnant.
According to the Miss Universe website, "they must not have ever been married, not had a marriage annulled nor given birth to, or parented a child. The titleholders are also required to remain unmarried throughout their reign".