News On Japan

Miss FLASH Contest Winners Showcase in White Bikinis

Mame Endo, Toki Shiraishi, and Miyabi Miyakawa Shine as Miss FLASH 2024 Grand Prix Winners

TOKYO - A press conference held on January 16th in Tokyo to announce the grand prize winners of "Miss FLASH 2024," a competition organized by the weekly photo magazine FLASH (Kobunsha).

Mame Endo, Koko Shiraishi, and Miyabi Miyakawa emerged victorious as the three grand prize winners.

Now in its 18th year, the prestigious gravure audition "Miss FLASH 2024" concluded with these three winners after a grueling five-month survival battle that began last June. They were selected from among 14 finalists.

Endo, a former office worker who recently began her activities as a gravure idol, expressed her joy: "I am incredibly honored. The past five months have been filled with a range of emotions, but I am filled with gratitude towards the fans who have supported me throughout. I am delighted to be able to report my success in this way. Thank you very much."

Shiraishi, a newcomer to gravure modeling despite her background as a child actress, showed her smile and said, "I am overflowing with happiness. It is thanks to everyone that I am able to stand here. My current feelings are truly the best. I am so happy that I want to write 'Grand Prize' on my back and walk around."

Lastly, Miyakawa, a dual-threat gravure idol, tearfully called out, "Thank you so much for all the support over these five months. I am able to stand here because of the people who supported me. Please continue to support me as I keep working hard. Thank you!"

Source: Oricon

News On Japan
POPULAR NEWS

Japan’s World Cup campaign ended in the cruelest possible fashion on June 29, as Gabriel Martinelli scored in the fifth minute of stoppage time to give Brazil a 2-1 victory over the Samurai Blue in their knockout match in Houston. Japan had led in the first half and were still level at 1-1 in the final moments, but Martinelli’s late strike sent Brazil into the Round of 16 and eliminated Japan from the tournament.

Strong earthquakes have continued to shake parts of Japan in recent weeks, with 11 temblors measuring lower 5 or above on the Japanese seismic intensity scale recorded across the country since April 2026.

A Kintetsu Railway train derailed inside Kyoto Station on the morning of June 29, forcing partial suspensions on the Kintetsu Kyoto Line for the rest of the day and causing long delays that hit commuters, students and tourists.

A section of stone wall at Hikone Castle, one of Japan’s few surviving original Edo-period castles and a National Treasure whose main keep remains intact more than 400 years after its construction, collapsed after heavy rain caused by Typhoons No. 7 and No. 8, Hikone city officials said.

Japan advanced to the knockout stage of the World Cup after a 1-1 draw with Sweden on June 25, finishing second in Group F and setting up a Round of 32 clash with Brazil in Houston.

MEDIA CHANNELS
         

MORE Entertainment NEWS

Akihiro Miwa, the singer and actor whose career spanned chanson, theater, film, television and voice acting, died of old age on June 20 at the age of 91, her management office said.

Hiroji Miyamoto, one of Japan’s leading rock singers, marked his 60th birthday with an appearance on News23, reflecting on a life spent in music and performing the program’s ending theme, "Close Your Eyes," in the studio.

When exploring an online dating platform for the first time, it helps to know which features actually shape the experience — and which ones are just window dressing.

Aesthetic calm and peace in japan.

Japan's parliament on June 17 enacted a revised copyright law that creates a new right allowing singers, musicians, and record companies to receive royalties when their recorded music is used as background music in commercial facilities such as cafes in Japan and overseas.

A fashion event produced by Kansai Collection was held on June 13 at COMTEC PORTBASE in Minato Ward, Nagoya, where 300 participants were chosen as the inaugural Nagoya Select Models through audience voting.

Tamayo Nakamura, the actress and television personality whose career spanned more than seven decades and bridged the worlds of traditional Japanese theater, film, television drama and variety entertainment, died of pneumonia on June 9th. She was 86.

The YOSAKOI Soran Festival, one of Sapporo's signature early-summer events, opened on June 10, bringing together 275 dance teams for five days of performances across the city.