The scene is reminiscent of a 2008 'shoe-ing' of a US president, but being a woman --with a woman's natural instinct for shoes-- Hillary Clinton knew exactly how to dodge a flying one.

The former US State Secretary was speaking at an annual convention on scrap recycling in Las Vegas when a woman from the audience threw a shoe at her.

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The unnamed woman also threw stacks of paper at Mrs. Clinton before exiting the convention hall escorted by secret service and security officers.

The shoe-throwing woman was subsequently arrested by Las Vegas police after she left the gathering, which was hosted by the Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries.

It is not clear if the woman was dramatizing any sentiments about scrap, or the recycling of scrap, when she vented her ire on Mrs. Clinton.

Convention organizers said the woman was not affiliated with the scrap recycling institute nor was she invited to the event.

Mrs. Clinton was not hurt, and though momentarily stunned by the incident, continued  on with her speech.

"My goodness, I didn't know that solid waste management was so controversial. Thank goodness she didn't play softball like I did," Clinton said, eliciting a thunderous applause from an audience of around 1,000.

In 2008, former President George W. Bush, also received a similar shoe attack in Iraq when a man threw a shoe at him in the middle of a press conference.

While Mrs. Clinton has not confirmed her bid for the presidency in 2016, she remains the Democratic Party's strongest contender based on polls.

She also has the backing of one of the more aggressive super PACs, "Ready for Hillary", which began promoting her presidential bid several months ago and has already raised $1.7 million in donations in the first quarter of 2014 alone.