Zuleyka Rivera (full name Zuleyka Jerris Rivera Mendoza) was born on October 3, 1987 in Cayey, Puerto Rico to Jerry Rivera and Carmen Mendoza. She is a famous Puerto Rican top model. Zuleyka Rivera was raised in Salinas and before winning the "Miss Puerto Rico Universe" title, she won the local pageant for her town, Salinas. She was also placed second in the "Miss Teen Puerto Rico" contest. She studied at the University of Puerto Rico with the specialization in journalism. She is the fifth Puerto Rican to win the title, and makes the Miss Puerto Rico Organization the second most successful in the pageant. She won the title of "Miss Universe 2006" on July 23, 2006 in Los Angeles, California. After winning the crown she was interviewed by many modelling agencies in Los Angeles and New York. Zuleyka Rivera also traveled to Japan where she presented the Five Star Diamond Award to the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in Tokyo and participated in a photo shoot with with her first runner-up Kurara Chibana, Miss Universe Japan and Zuleyka. Her ambitions for the future are to become a famous international model and to be a great actress of infinite range.