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cnn
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The Ukrainian-born beauty queen who sparked a debate about cultural identity when she was named Miss Japan renounced her title just two weeks later. being crowned.
Karolina Shiino, the first person of predominantly European descent to win the Miss Nippon pageant (which takes its title from the country’s Japanese name), announced her decision to resign on Monday following allegations in a local newspaper that she was having an affair with a married man.
in a statement Posted on Instagram, the 26-year-old model apologized to the man’s family and those involved. She also announced that she was parting ways with her talent agency, writing, “I am truly sorry for causing a lot of trouble to a lot of people and betraying those who have supported me.”
Meanwhile, event organizers issued a statement saying that Shiino had “requested to withdraw from the contest for personal reasons.” Kaoru Wada, president of the Miss Nippon Association, added that the 2024 title will remain “vacant.”
Kazuki Oishi/Sipa
Shiino, who has lived in the Japanese city of Nagoya since she was a child, won the Miss Nippon title last month.
Despite being a naturalized citizen who speaks fluent Japanese and has lived in the country since she was 5 years old, Shiino’s victory in the pageant proved controversial, with some critics questioning whether someone without Japanese ethnicity could encapsulate Japanese beauty ideals. country.
“I wanted to be recognized as Japanese,” Shiino he told CNN in Tokyo after his victory last month. “They kept telling me that I’m not Japanese, but I am absolutely Japanese, so I entered Miss Japan genuinely believing in myself. I was very happy to be recognized like that.”
The decision to choose a winner with European heritage sparked debate on social media, raising questions about what it means to be Japanese and the impact of Western beauty ideals in Asia.
“If the Miss Nippon pageant is based on the concept of beauty, I personally wish it were based on Japanese beauty standards,” said historian Hiroe Yamashita. wrote in X after Shiino’s victory. “But with Karolina Shiino’s appearance, an (ethnically) Japanese girl has no chance of succeeding under modern beauty values.”
Recounting to CNN the difficulties he faced growing up in Japan, an ethnically homogeneous country with comparatively low levels of immigration, Shiino called for a broader definition of who should be considered Japanese. “After all, we live in an era of diversity, where diversity is necessary,” he said at the time.