Kanako Date, Japan’s representative for the Miss World beauty pageant, is apparently a direct descendant of a samurai lord that reigned over part of Japan during the 17th century.
The samurai lord, Date Masamune, ruled over what is known today as Sendai in Miyagi Prefecture, according to SoraNews24. He earned the nickname “One-Eyed Dragon” after losing one of his eyes from smallpox as a kid.
Born in the late 16th century, Masamune was regarded as an outstanding tactician during his reign, which started in 1600 until his death in 1636. He is also known for his crescent-moon-bearing helmet.
Kanako, meanwhile, is not too far from her aristocratic samurai lineage despite being 21 generations away from it. The 22-year-old model lists Japanese dance, the koto (a stringed Japanese instrument), and archery as her hobbies, according to the report.
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Kanako, who was crowned as Japan’s representative for the Miss World 2018 competition to be held in Sanya, China, is also a talented linguist who can speak multiple languages including English, French, German, Spanish, and Korean. She also studied abroad in China, and is currently studying as a fourth-year law student Japan’s prestigious Keio University.
But what truly wowed judges during the Miss World 2018 talent competition was her hair raising operatic voice, displayed in her performance of the aria “Vissi d’arte” from Giacomo Puccini’s “Tosca.”
Her win in this part of the competition was the first for Japan since the pageant’s inaugural iteration in 1951, according to SoraNews24.
Miss World 2018 will crown its winner on December 8 in Sanya.
Featured image via Instagram / kanakodate
