Newly-crowned Miss Universe Andrea Meza helped Miss Peru get into her evening gown in the middle of the competition

• Miss Mexico Andrea Meza was crowned the new Miss Universe on Sunday night.
• Meza told Insider that she helped Miss Peru get into her dress before the evening gown round.
• "I know it's a competition but you don't want to be mean or ignore anyone else," Meza said.

Miss Universe is a title that will change any woman's life, so it's no surprise that the pageant queens feel plenty of pressure on the big night.

But that didn't stop Miss Mexico Andrea Meza - who took home the crown on Sunday - from helping one of her competitors in the middle of the pageant.

Meza told Insider that she helped Miss Peru Janick Maceta Del Castillo get into her dress just before the evening gown round took place.

"Yesterday, when we got into the top 10 and we were changing into our gowns, everyone was busy," Meza said on Monday. "I was the first one ready in my gown and Miss Peru was struggling a lot with her stuff, and nobody was helping her because all of the chaperones were busy."

Maceta del Castillo's gown had become stuck on one of its stones.

"Her dress was also very heavy, so she struggled getting into it by herself," Meza recalled. "And I was like, 'OK, let me help you. Just relax, everything is fine.'"

Meza said she believes helping the other women backstage is always the right thing to do, even if they are competing against each other.

"I know it's a competition, but you don't want to be mean or ignore anyone else," she said. "Just help one another because, at the end, you want to have a good memory about this."

Meza, 26, was named as the winner of the 69th edition of the Miss Universe pageant at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Florida.

Mario Lopez, who hosted the show with Olivia Culpo, shouted "Viva Mexico!" as he announced the news.

In second place was Miss Brazil Julia Gama. Maceta Del Castillo took the third spot.

Meza has a degree in software engineering and is "proud to be a woman who graduated in a male-dominated field," according to the Miss Universe website. She works as a makeup artist and model.

The pageant queen is also an activist and currently works with the Municipal Institute for Women in the fight to end gender violence.