By using this website you agree that we use cookies. You can find out more in the privacy policy.

English Woman's Journal - Ukraine-born Miss Japan gives up crown amid affair scandal

Ukraine-born Miss Japan gives up crown amid affair scandal

THINGS TO KNOW 07.02.2024
Ukraine-born Miss Japan gives up crown amid affair scandal
Ukraine-born Miss Japan gives up crown amid affair scandal / Photo: STR - JIJI Press/AFP

The Ukraine-born winner of the Miss Japan pageant has relinquished her crown after a report emerged of an affair she had with a married doctor.

Change text size:

Karolina Shiino's nomination in January first sparked debate after some right-wingers questioned the title being awarded to a naturalised Japanese citizen.

A scandal then erupted over her private life when weekly magazine Shukan Bunshun reported on her extra-marital relationship -- taboo for beauty pageant contestants, who are held to squeaky-clean moral standards.

Japanese entertainment personalities who have affairs, dabble in drugs or suffer other scandals also often find themselves shunned by their fans and employers.

The Miss Japan Association said Monday that it had accepted a request from Shiino to return the crown for "personal reasons", adding there would be no Miss Japan for 2024.

Shiino said she wanted to "deeply apologise" to those involved, including the man's wife, on the same day her management agency said she had confirmed the affair.

At first "I couldn't speak the truth due to chaos and fear... I apologise to those who believed in me and supported me," the 26-year-old said on Instagram.

"I take the situation seriously and have relinquished the Miss Japan Grand Prix title," wrote the model, who moved to Japan around the age of five.

In a statement Monday, Shiino's agency said she told them she had begun seeing the man believing him to be divorced, but continued the relationship after learning he was still married.

Miss Japan, first held in 1950, is awarded for "Japanese-style beauty" consisting of "inner beauty, beauty in appearance and beauty of actions," its website says.

After Shiino's nomination attracted attention online, people quickly weighed in on social media.

"It doesn't matter if she is Jewish-Ukrainian or not, but I can't accept her character... Why is she Miss Japan?" one user wrote on X, formerly Twitter.

Others wrote in support of Shiino on her Instagram post.

"You have Japanese spirit. I don't think such (a) personal private thing should be a reason for you to step down but this is Japan," said a reply with nearly 350 likes.

P.Munro--EWJ

Featured

Karbon-X Grows Global Reach with EU Allowances Trading Rollout

CALGARY, AB / ACCESS Newswire / June 18, 2025 / Karbon-X Corp. (OTCQX:KARX), a vertically integrated climate solutions company, has officially opened its EU trading accounts and commenced operations within the European Union Emissions Trading System (EU ETS). The expansion enables Karbon-X to provide direct access to EU Allowances (EUAs) for entities regulated under the EU ETS, further strengthening its compliance market capabilities.

With EuroPride, Lisbon courts LGBTQ travellers

Rainbow flags will fill Lisbon's streets on Saturday when the Portuguese capital hosts the annual EuroPride parade in support of LGBTQ rights which organisers hope will cement its standing as a gay-friendly destination.

Karbon-X and Directions Group Join Forces to Develop a Residential Solar Carbon Project Aligned with Alberta's TIER Program

CALGARY, AB / ACCESS Newswire / June 17, 2025 / Karbon-X Corp. (OTCQX:KARX), a vertically integrated climate solutions company, has entered into a strategic agreement with Directions Group Inc., a Canadian leader in clean energy sales and growth strategy. The partnership will focus on the development and implementation of a residential solar carbon project designed to generate offset credits eligible under Alberta's Technology Innovation and Emissions Reduction (TIER) regulation, one of Canada's most robust compliance carbon pricing systems.

Camino Announces High-Grade Channel Results of 7 Meters @ 4.3% Copper, 25.5 ppm Silver and 18 meters @ 1.57 % Copper and 11.35 ppm Silver at Los Chapitos in Peru

VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESS Newswire / June 17, 2025 / Camino Minerals Corporation (TSXV:COR)(OTC PINK:CAMZF) ("Camino" or the "Company") is pleased to announce high‐grade copper channel results from the Katty prospect located in the Diva Trend, one of several prospective targets at the Company's Los Chapitos Copper Project ("Los Chapitos" or the "Project") in Peru. A total of 12 excavated channels were completed at the prospect and all channels contained significant high-grade intercepts of copper with associated silver (Table 1). Los Chapitos is Camino's second copper project with partner Nittetsu Mining Co, Ltd. ("Nittetsu"), which can earn a 35% interest in Los Chapitos once it completes a total investment of CDN$10 Million (see news release dated June 14, 2023). Rio Tinto, a major copper producer, recently staked claims adjacent to Los Chapitos (see news release dated May 17, 2024). Camino is also advancing its mine development project, the Puquios Copper Project, with Nittetsu Mining in Chile (see news release dated April 17, 2025).

Change text size: