“I’m so bummed I won’t be able to make it to China this year. Love my VS family, and will be with all my girls in spirit!! Can’t wait to tune in with everyone to see the beautiful show I know it will be, and already can’t wait for next year! 🙂 x,” Gigi wrote in a tweet on Thursday, as her sister, Bella Hadid, and the rest of the Victoria’s Secret models make their way to China.
Back in August, Hadid shared a throwback video of her 2016 fitting, along with the news that she would be walking in the show. “Forever and ever and ever a dream come true to be asked back to the VS Show !!! 🙌🏼 Thank you my friends @ed_razek@10magazine @johndavidpfeiffer@monica.mitro for another unforgettable opportunity; every aspect makes me feel like a dreaming kid again 🕊🕊🖤 (as shown here at last year’s fitting, by @jeromeduran)! ☁️ @victoriassecret#VSFS2017“, she wrote on Instagram.
No information was available about the sudden change of plans, but Russian models Irina Sharipov Julia Belyakova and Kate Grigorieva, along with Ukrainian model Dasha Khlystun have reportedly all been denied Chinese visas ahead of their trips to Shanghai and will be forced to miss the show.
Some also speculated that her last-minute absence may have to do with an insensitive Snapchat video Hadid posted earlier this year (and resurfaced this summer after her casting was announced), in which she appeared to be mocking Asian facial features. The star did apologise on Chinese social media website Weibo, but received major backlash on social media about heading to China for the show.
Victoria’s Secret declined to comment about Hadid’s absence.
This article originally appeared on PEOPLE