TOKYO: Miss Karolina Shiino, the Ukraine-born winner of the 2024 Miss Japan beauty pageant, has relinquished her crown amid controversy, contest organisers reported on Feb 5.

Her resignation came after a magazine claimed she was involved with a married man.

The Miss Japan Association has confirmed that Miss Shiino’s title will remain unoccupied for the rest of 2024, marking an unprecedented situation in the pageant’s history.

According to a report by Japanese magazine Shukan Bunshun on Jan 31, the 26-year-old was said to be in a romantic relationship with a married doctor.

The Miss Japan Association defended Shiino on Feb 1, stating on its website that the doctor had misrepresented himself as being single, and Miss Shiino was not aware of his marital status.

“Miss Japan Association believes there was no fault on the part of Karolina Shiino,” it said.

However, further revelations indicated that Miss Shiino was aware of the man’s marriage and had misled the public about it, the association said on Feb 5.

Subsequently, she offered an apology and relinquished her title, which the association accepted.

The agency representing Miss Shiino released a statement on Feb 5 acknowledging her continuation of the relationship post the discovery of the doctor’s marital status and announcing the termination of her contract.

In a personal message shared on Instagram, Miss Shiino expressed her regret, mentioning being “unable to speak the truth due to confusion and fear”.

Miss Shiino was born in Ukraine and moved to Japan at age five when her mother remarried a Japanese man.

In September 2023, she shared on an Instagram post her journey of becoming a naturalised Japanese citizen.

Her crowning as Miss Japan on Jan 22 reignited discussions on the essence of Japanese identity.

In an emotional acceptance speech, she had expressed her gratitude for being recognised as Japanese.

“All my life I’ve been told I’m not Japanese enough, both directly and indirectly, but I know I am Japanese. I can’t help it. Nobody has the right to tell me I’m not,” she said during an interview with Japan Times on Feb 1.

Shiino added that she firmly believes being Japanese is a matter of the heart and that self-identification is key, stating, “If a person thinks she is Japanese, then she is”. - The Straits Times/ANN