Karolina Shiino is a model who became the first naturalized Japanese citizen to win the Miss Japan Grand Prix beauty pageant in 2024. However, her victory sparked debates over her nationality and identity, as some people questioned her eligibility and authenticity as a Japanese woman.
Moreover, her title was revoked shortly after she admitted to having an affair with a married man. Who is Karolina Shiino? What is her background, ethnicity, and citizenship? How did she become Miss Japan and why did she lose her crown? Here is a brief overview of Karolina Shiino’s life and career.
Background
Karolina Shiino was born on August 24, 1997, in Ternopil, Ukraine, to Ukrainian parents. She moved to Nagoya, Japan, at the age of five, when her mother Svitlana married a Japanese man.
She grew up in Japan, where she learned to speak Japanese fluently and adopted Japanese culture and values. She also has a maternal grandmother who migrated to Japan as a Ukrainian refugee in 2022, following the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Shiino received Japanese citizenship in 2022, when she was 25 years old.
Career
Shiino started her career as a model, working for various magazines, brands, and events. She also participated in several beauty contests, such as Miss Nagoya, Miss Universe Japan, and Miss World Japan.
She gained popularity and recognition when she won the 2024 Miss Japan Grand Prix beauty pageant, which was held in Tokyo on January 22, 2024. She beat 29 other contestants and impressed the judges with her confidence, charm, and intelligence. She also became the first naturalized Japanese citizen to win the pageant, which was established in 1950.
Controversy
Shiino’s win as Miss Japan sparked controversy and debate among the public, the media, and the online community. Some people praised her for her beauty, talent, and personality, and congratulated her for breaking the stereotypes and barriers of the Japanese society.
Others criticized her for her foreign origin, appearance, and accent, and questioned her eligibility and authenticity as a Japanese woman. Some even accused her of cheating and lying about her language skills and background. Shiino faced backlash and harassment from some right-wing nationalists, who claimed that she did not represent the traditional Japanese beauty and identity.
Shiino responded to the controversy by expressing her gratitude and pride for being accepted as Japanese, and by stating her hope to contribute to building a society that respects diversity and is not judgmental about how people look.
She also said that she felt Japanese in both “speech and mind”, but that she also respected and cherished her Ukrainian roots. She said that she wanted to use her platform as Miss Japan to inspire and empower other people, especially women and children, who face discrimination and challenges because of their differences .
Scandal
Shiino’s reign as Miss Japan was short-lived, as she was stripped of her title and crown after a scandal emerged about her personal life. On January 31, 2024, a Japanese weekly magazine called Shukan Bunshun reported that Shiino was having an affair with a married man, who was a doctor and a social media influencer known as the “muscle doctor”.
The magazine claimed that Shiino and the doctor met on Instagram, and that they had been dating for several months, even though the doctor was still married and had a child. The magazine also published photos and messages that allegedly proved their relationship .
The Miss Japan Grand Prix organizers initially denied the report as untrue, but on February 5, 2024, Shiino admitted to the affair, withdrew her Miss Japan title, and offered to terminate her contract with her entertainment agency. She said that she was sorry for hurting the doctor’s wife and family, and for disappointing the Miss Japan Grand Prix officials and her supporters.
She also said that she was confused and scared, and that she lied about the affair at first. She said that she started seeing the doctor believing that he was divorced, but that she continued the relationship even after finding out that he was still married .
The Miss Japan Grand Prix organizers accepted Shiino’s request to return the crown, and revoked her title as Miss Japan. They also declared the 2024 Miss Japan title vacant, and said that they would not hold another pageant to select a new winner.
They said that they were saddened and shocked by Shiino’s scandal, and that they regretted their decision to choose her as Miss Japan. They also apologized to the public and the sponsors for the trouble and inconvenience caused by the incident .
Conclusion
Karolina Shiino is a controversial beauty queen with a mixed heritage and a scandalous affair. She was born in Ukraine, but moved to Japan when she was five years old. She became a naturalized Japanese citizen in 2022, and won the 2024 Miss Japan Grand Prix beauty pageant in January 2024.
However, her win sparked debates over her nationality and identity, as some people questioned her eligibility and authenticity as a Japanese woman. Moreover, her title was revoked shortly after she admitted to having an affair with a married man. She is a woman who faced both praise and criticism, and who made both history and headlines, in the Japanese society.