Miss Japan Beauty Pageant winner causes stir after countrymen claim she doesn’t look like them, say win is political

In a world where beauty comes in all shapes and sizes, followers of the Miss Japan Grand Prix pageant have questioned the pre-requisites for entry after Ukrainian woman Carolina Shiino claimed a controversial victory.

Ms Shiino, 26, was born to two Ukrainian parents and became a naturalised Japanese citizen after moving to the nation at the age of 5, according to a BBC report.

“There have been racial barriers, and it has been challenging to be accepted as Japanese,” admitted a tearful Shiino in Japanese after her crowning moment on Monday.

The beauty is the first naturalised citizen to win Miss Japan, though has raised eyebrows, and some questions, on what it means to be Japanese in the modern world.

In 2015, winner Ariana Miyamoto claimed the title, though similarly sparked debate for her half-Japanese and half-African routes — the first biracial woman to win.

However, with Ms Shiino possessing absolutely no Japanese genes or traditionally local features, some have said she shouldn’t be eligible to qualify for the title of Miss Japan.

Social media has weighed in on the debate, with some X users calling the competition “rigged” or even “corrupted”, claiming the Ukrainian winner was a purely political choice.

“If she were born Russian, she wouldn’t have won. Not a chance. Obviously, the criteria is now a political decision. What a sad day for Japan,” one person said.

One organiser of the pageant, Ai Wada, told the BBC that judges had chosen Ms Shiino as the winner with “full confidence”.

Ms Wada claimed: “She speaks and writes in beautiful and polite Japanese. She is more Japanese than we are.”

Other recent examples of beauty pageant contestants being born outside their home nations have come under less scrutiny, with some portraying foreign appearances.

Celese Viel was born in the US but represented Miss Chile in 2023.

Miss Thailand 2023, Anntonia Porsild is a Danish Thai model but born in India — signifying the cross-cultural connections Miss Universe has hoped to promote in recent times.