Carolina Shiino, born in Ukraine, came to Japan at the age of 5. Since naturalized, she was chosen Miss Japan 2024. A choice that doesn't appeal to everyone.
26-year-old model Carolina Shiino, of Ukrainian origin, was crowned Miss Japan on Monday, January 22, becoming the first naturalized Japanese citizen to win the competition.
Her choice caused controversy on social media, with some criticizing the fact that she was not from Japan. “This person who was chosen as Miss Japan is not even half Japanese, but 100% pure Ukrainian. Sure, she’s beautiful, but she’s Miss Japan,” one user wrote on X (formerly Twitter).
“I think the Japanese are getting the wrong message when a person with European looks is called the most beautiful Japanese woman,” said another netizen quoted by British media.
Speaking to the BBC, Ai Wada, the organizer of the competition, assured that the jury had chosen Carolina Shiino “with full conviction”. It is not the first time that a winner of the competition has been questioned in the country. In 2015, Ariana Miyamoto became the first biracial Miss Japan Victim of racism according to his choice.
“She speaks and writes in elegant and correct Japanese,” said Ai Wada. “She’s more Japanese than us.”
The Ukrainian-born young woman arrived in the Land of the Rising Sun at the age of five, reports the BBC. Carolina Shiino received Japanese citizenship early last year and asserted on Instagram that although she does not “look Japanese,” her spirit is “Japanese.”
“I have often faced obstacles that prevented me from being accepted as Japanese, so I am very grateful to be recognized as Japanese in this competition,” she said Monday after her coronation.