PAGEANT Circle

Naturalized Japanese with Ukrainian roots, Karolina Shiino, was crowned Miss Japan 2024 (Miss Nippon) on Monday, January 22 in Tokyo. The 26-year-old model has made headlines around the world after winning her title as she is the first-ever caucasian woman to become Miss Japan in the pageant's 56-year history. Her victory ignited an online debate with many questioning the results, saying her win was "inappropriate" as "Miss Japan should be genetically Japanese." In a post on social media, Karolina thanked everyone who supported her journey to winning the national competition. She also shared how the past few months leading to the final allowed her to learn more about Japanese culture. "I fell in love with Japan even more and I feel like I was able to grow as a Japanese person," she said. "I was able to renew my interest in aspects of Japanese culture and traditional performing arts that I had not had much exposure to since I was familiar with them

Ai Yoshida was crowned Miss Japan 2023 in a national competition held last Thursday, September 28 at the Hotel Chinzanso in Tokyo. The 25-year-old public servant representing Saga bested 39 other contestants to win the national title. She succeeds last year's winner  Shiori Kojima of Kanagawa. Risa Hiroi of Yamaguchi placed second while Shiori Ohno of Kumamoto, Miyuki Hase of Hokkaido, and Yanase Alessa of Osaka were third, fourth, and fifth, respectively. Alongside the new Miss Japan, Junya Ota of Kanagawa was proclaimed Mr. Japan 2023 while Ayumi Yoshimura of Kyoto clinched the title of Miss Japan Premium 2023. Their respective predecessors were  Kaito Iwami and Mari Uehara. The winners will now embark on a year-long adventure as titleholders and will be involved in official events and charity activities. "We aim to create opinion leaders who are not just beautiful, but also possess intelligence, sensibility, humanity, physicality, and self-confidence," the organizers

Rio Miyazaki was crowned Miss Universe Japan 2023 in a national competition held on Wednesday, August 30 at the Yamano Hall in Tokyo. The 20-year-old early childhood education student at Kyoritsu Women's University from Shizuoka Prefecture beat 30 other competitors to win the coveted national title. Nana Miwa and Risa Morishita were the first and second runners-up, respectively, while Mio Yamamoto and Misaki Matsumoto rounded out the Top 5 finalists. The rest of the Top 11 semifinalists were Kana Takada, Karen Miyazawa, Mina Yasukawa, Ria Iuchi, Sayaka Uechi, and Yuma Enomoto. Last year's winner Marybelen Sakamoto crowned her successor at the end of the glittering event. The new Miss Universe Japan will now prepare to represent her country at Miss Universe 2023 in El Salvador this November. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Miss Universe Japan Official (@missuniversejapan) Photos: Miss Universe Japan RELATED POST: Miss Universe Japan 2023: Meet t

Kirari Oshiro bested 22 other competitors to be crowned Miss Earth Japan 2023 in a national competition held on Thursday, August 3 at Hotel Chinzanso Tokyo. The 20-year-old university student representing Okinawa succeeds last year's winner Manae Matsumoto and will now prepare to represent her country at Miss Earth 2023 in Vietnam this December. Rounding out the Top 5 finalists were Haruna Kokubo of Tokyo (second place), Arisa Nagasaka of Osaka (third place), and Yume Kusunoki of Niigata (fourth place). Reigning Miss Earth Mina Sue Choi from Korea and former Miss Earth Fire Jareerat "Baitong" Petsom from Thailand were special guests at the event. Meet the new Miss Earth Japan: View this post on Instagram A post shared by Miss Earth Japan Official (@missearthjapan) Photos: Miss Earth Japan / Instagram

Yayoi Machida was crowned Miss Grand Japan 2023 in a national competition held on Sunday, July 16 at the Tokyo FM Hall in Tokyo. The 26-year-old beauty from Tokyo bested 13 other competitors to win the title. She succeeds Seira Inoue and will now represent Japan at Miss Grand International 2023 in Vietnam this October. Karina Yamada was named first runner-up while Yuka Oyama, Taeko Yoshida, and Yuki Furihata were the second, third, and fourth runners-up, respectively, while Mizuki Ueda and Saki Inoue rounded out the Top 7 finalists. The new Miss Grand Japan also bagged the Best in Evening Gown, Miss Popular, and the Mix Chanel Award. View this post on Instagram A post shared by 𝐌𝐈𝐒𝐒 𝐆𝐑𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐉𝐀𝐏𝐀𝐍 (@missgrandjapan) Photos: H. Shima, Miss Grand Japan / Instagram

The Miss Grand Japan 2023 final competition will be held this Sunday, July 16 at the Tokyo FM Hall in Tokyo from 3 p.m. local time. A total of 14 beauties will be vying for the national title and the winner will have the opportunity to represent Japan at Miss Grand International 2023 in Vietnam this October. Who will succeed last year's winner Seira Inoue as Miss Grand Japan? Meet the contestants: View this post on Instagram A post shared by 𝐌𝐈𝐒𝐒 𝐆𝐑𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐉𝐀𝐏𝐀𝐍 (@missgrandjapan) Karina Yamada Megumi Ohteki Midori Sawano Miyuki Nozawa Mizuki Ueda Saho Suenaga Saki Inoue Shinoki Mami Taeko Yoshida Yayoi Machida Yuka Oyama Yuki Furihata Yukiko Hayashi Yurina Ishihara Photo: Kazz Yamaji, Miss Grand Japan / Instagram

Following several rounds of auditions and screenings, the 34 contestants vying for Miss Universe Japan 2023, and their official headshots, have been officially revealed online. Their pre-pageant training sessions already kicked off with the presence of national director Hiroko Mima, former titleholder Miyako Miyazaki, and last year's winner. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Miss Universe Japan Official (@missuniversejapan) This year's winner will be crowned in August by reigning Miss Universe Japan Marybelen Sakamoto and will represent the "Land of the Rising Sun" at Miss Universe 2023 in El Salvador. Who will be the next Miss Universe Japan? Meet the contestants: Ai Mariaximena Sakuraba Aki Yavas Angelene Seki Emi Ozaki Eri Fujita Hiroka Takise Kaho Tanaka Kana Takada Karen Miyazawa Kotoha Abe Kyoka Hori Madoka Higuchi Mao Eguchi Mariya Nagasawa Mayuka Oyama Miho Yamabe Mika Maeda Mina Yasukawa Mio Yamamoto Misaki Matsumoto Miyu Matsu

Erina Hanawa, a 29-year-old Japanese-Filipino beauty representing Japan, was crowned Miss Tourism World 2022 on Saturday, December 10 in Vinh Phuc, Vietnam. The runners-up were Justine Felizarta of the Philippines (first), Le Thi Huong of Vietnam (second), Iana Sharikova of Russia (third), and Adeduro Adetola of Nigeria (fourth). Rounding out the Top 12 semi-finalists were from China, Hanyu Zhang; Ghana, Emmanuella Apuri; Indonesia, Ade Yunita; Italy, Maria Carmen Crescenzi; Singapore, Delvina Katerina Luther; Thailand, Pakinee Duangpattra; and Turkey, Duygu Cerit. The continental titles were awarded to Colombia's Hazel Zuñiga Pinedo (Miss Tourism America), Thailand's Pakinee Duangpattra (Miss Tourism Asia), Ghana's Emmanuella Apuri (Miss Tourism Africa), and Turkey's Duygu Cerit (Miss Tourism Europe). Apart from the title, the new Miss Tourism World was also awarded the Best Tourism Video along with Thailand's Pakinee Duangpattra and Siberia's Milena Vatsil. Th

Tamao Yoneyama beat over 30 other contestants to be crowned Miss International Japan 2023 on Tuesday, November 8 at the Nissho Hall in Tokyo. The 26-year-old model from Tokyo, who now wears the newly unveiled crown by Long Beach Pearl, will represent Japan at the Miss International 2023 pageant. Mio Ikeda placed second while Sumire Akune, Kumi Miyamaru, and Marika Goto were third, fourth, and fifth, respectively. While this year's Miss International will be held on December 13 at Tokyo Dome City Hall, the date and venue for the 2023 edition have not yet been announced. Since 1960, Japan has only won Miss International once, in 2012, with the now actress and book author Ikumi Yoshimatsu. Meet the new Miss International Japan: View this post on Instagram A post shared by Miss International Japan (@missinternationaljapan) Photos: Miss International Japan / Instagram

Mayuko Hanawa was crowned Miss Supranational Japan 2022 on Saturday, September 24 at the Kanda Myojin Hall in Tokyo. The 27-year-old Japanese-Filipino teacher who represented the Ibaraki Prefecture will now prepare to compete in the Miss Supranational 2023 pageant in Poland. Miss Aichi, Ayano Shinkawa, 28, and Miss Shizuoka, Riho Sasaki, 22, were the first and second runners-up, respectively. A total of 18 finalists were selected to participate in the national final. At the end of the event, last year's winner Rina Okada relinquished her reign. Meet the new Miss Supranational Japan: View this post on Instagram A post shared by Mayuko Hanawa (@hanawa_mayuko) Photos:  Ben Gonzalez  / Mayuko Hanawa / Instagram

Kana Yamaguchi bested 30 other finalists (including her sister) to be crowned Miss World Japan 2022 on Thursday, September 22 at the Hulic Hall Tokyo. The 24-year-old licensed teacher, model, and TV host from Toyama Prefecture succeeds last year's winner Tamaki Hoshi and will now prepare to represent Japan at the 71st Miss World pageant. Years prior to winning her national title, the new Miss World Japan has never imagined standing in front of an audience. "I would be happy if my challenge could be someone's courage, strength, and hope. Thank you for giving me the chance to stand here again, and next time I will spread my wings to the world," she said in her bio for the competition. Kana also wants a society where sports enrich the lives of children and increase the number of people who aim for a well-being lifestyle through sports. She believes that with her new position, she can communicate with the government and the board of education to realize it. Apart from the