Ukrainian-Born Miss Japan Gives Up Her Title After Affair With Married Man Is Revealed

Ukrainian-born Karolina Shiino's controversial run as Miss Japan has come to an unceremonious ending. The 26-year-old lasted only a couple of weeks as the beauty pageant winner.

Shiino, who was born to two Ukrainian parents, moved to Japan when she was 5 after her mother remarried. She speaks Japanese and has since become a citizen.

On January 22 she was crowned Miss Japan, with many questioning how she could be given the title due to the fact that she has no Japanese blood.  That controversy is now over with another one taking its place.

It turns out Shiino was involved in a relationship with a married doctor and influencer known as the "muscle doctor." The extramarital affair caused her to announce earlier this week on Instagram that she was renouncing her Miss Japan title and parting ways with her modeling agency.

"I’m very sorry for causing the tremendous trouble and for acting as if betraying everyone who has supported me," Shiino said after getting caught.

The relationship with Takuma Maeda, aka the muscle doctor, was first reported by the Weekly Bonshun magazine. In a move unbecoming of a beauty queen, Shiino initially claimed that she didn't know he was married.

It's A Sad Day For Miss Japan

That turned out to be a lie. One made out of a state of shock and fear, but a lie nonetheless. Shiino eventually came clean and apologized for lying.

Unfortunately, the damage had already been done, and the groundbreaking pageant winner had no choice but to give up her title. The Miss Japan organization has accepted her renunciation.

Karolina Shiino, a model who became a naturalized Japanese citizen from Ukraine, posing with the trophy of the Miss Japan crown in Tokyo. (Photo by JIJI Press / AFP) / Japan OUT (Photo by STR/JIJI Press/AFP via Getty Images)

This sadly means that there will be no Miss Japan in 2024.  The organization said that the slot for the 2024 winner would remain vacant for the rest of the year.

There's apparently no sliding the runner-up over into the Miss Japan crown.  Let the vacancy serve as a reminder that hooking up with married men, then lying about it, is never a good idea.

It's truly a sad day, not only Miss Japan, but the pageant industry as a whole.  They weren't ready for Karolina Shiino and all that she brought to the table.