The Yasuda Kinen is a Japanese International Grade I Thoroughbred horse race held at the Tokyo Racecourse in Tokyo. Raced annually each June, the Yasuda Kinen is run at a distance of eight furlongs on turf and is open to horses three years of age and up. The event was first run in 1951 as the Yasuda Sho in honor of Izaemon Yasuda, the founding chairman of the Japan Racing Association. Following the death of Mr. Yasuda, in 1958 the race name was changed to the Yasuda Kinen.
The Queen Elizabeth II Cup is an International Grade 1 flat horse race in Japan for three-year-old and above thoroughbred fillies and mares run over a distance of 2,200 metres on the turf at Kyoto Racecourse in November.
The Kikuka-shō is a Japanese Grade 1 flat horse race in Japan for three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies run over a distance of 3,000 metres at the Kyoto Racecourse, Fushimi-ku, Kyoto, Kyoto Prefecture in October.
The Oka Sho (桜花賞) is a Japanese Grade 1 flat horse race in Japan. The race is restricted to three-year-old Thoroughbred fillies and is run over a distance of 1,600 metres at the Hanshin Racecourse, Takarazuka, Hyōgo in April.
The Takarazuka Kinen (宝塚記念) is a Grade I flat horse race in Japan for three-year-old and above thoroughbreds where they run over a distance of 2,200 metres at Hanshin Racecourse (阪神競馬場) in late June. It is one of the two "All-Star" races in Japanese horse racing; the other is the Arima Kinen in late December.
The Takamatsunomiya Kinen (高松宮記念) is a Grade 1 flat horse race in Japan for four-year-old and above thoroughbreds. It is run over a distance of 1,200 metres at Chukyo Racecourse in late March.
The Shūka Shō (秋華賞) is a Grade 1 flat horse race in Japan for three-year-old thoroughbred fillies run over a distance of 2,000 metres at the Kyoto Racecourse, Fushimi-ku, Kyoto, Kyoto Prefecture in October.
Maurice, is a Japanese Thoroughbred racehorse. After showing promise as a two-year-old he disappointed in 2014, being well-beaten in all four of his races. In 2015 he emerged as one of the best milers in the world with an unbeaten record of six wins from six races. After two minor wins early in the year he recorded his first important success in the Lord Derby Challenge Trophy before taking the Grade I Yasuda Kinen. He returned in autumn to win the Mile Championship and then defeated a strong international field in the Hong Kong Mile. His performances in 2015 saw him named Best Japanese Sprinter or Miler and Japanese Horse of the Year. In the following year he won the Champions Mile before moving up i distance in the autumn to win the Tenno Sho and the Hong Kong Cup.
The Hopeful Stakes (ホープフルステークス) is the only Grade 1 middle-distance race for two-year-old thoroughbreds in the JRA. This race was started as the Radio Tampa Hai Sansai Hinba Stakes, a mile race that was held at Hanshin Racecourse for two-year-old fillies. In 1991, not fillies but colts were allowed to run, with the distance extended to the current 2,000 meters. Its name was changed several times. This race was considered important because no other graded race over 2,000 meters for two-year-olds existed in those days. In particular, it was a good chance for horses with ambition for Triple Crown Races to experience a middle-distance race. In fact, some triple crown race winners had previously won this race. Logi Universe (2008) and One and Only (2013) won the Japanese Derby, Victoire Pisa (2009) won the Satsuki Shō, and Epiphaneia (2012) won the Kikuka Shō.
Mikki Isle is a Japanese Thoroughbred racehorse and sire. After winning two of his three starts as a juvenile he emerged as a top-class performer in 2014 when his wins included the Nikkan Sports Sho Shinzan Kinen, Arlington Cup, NHK Mile Cup and Swan Stakes. He failed to win as four-year-old but ran well in defeat in major races such as the Takamatsunomiya Kinen and the Sprinters Stakes. He reached his peak in 2016 when he won the Hankyu Hai and ran second in both the Takamatsunomiya Kinen and the Sprinters Stakes before recording his biggest win in the Mile Championship. At the end of the year he took the JRA Award for Best Sprinter or Miler. He was a front-running racehorse and was often vulnerable to fast-finishing opponents.
The Yomiuri Milers Cup is a Japanese Grade 2 flat horse race in Japan for Thoroughbreds of at least four years of age. It was run over a distance of 1600 metres at Hanshin Racecourse until 2011 in April but is now run at Kyoto Racecourse. The race serves as a major trial for the Yasuda Kinen.
The Swan Stakes is a Grade 2 horse race for Thoroughbreds aged three and over run in October over a distance of 1,400 metres at Kyoto Racecourse.
The Kyoto Nisai Stakes is a Grade 3 horse race for two-year-old Thoroughbreds run in November over a distance of 2000 metres at Kyoto Racecourse.
The Procyon Stakes is a Grade 3 horse race for Thoroughbreds aged three and over, run in July over a distance of 1400 metres on dirt at Chukyo Racecourse.
The CBC Sho is a Grade 3 horse race for Thoroughbreds aged three and over, run in late June or early July over a distance of 1200 metres on turf at Chukyo Racecourse.
The Challenge Cup is a Grade 3 horse race for Thoroughbreds aged three and over, run in late November or early December over a distance of 2000 metres on turf at Hanshin Racecourse.
Admire Mars is a Japanese Thoroughbred racehorse. As a juvenile in 2018 he was undefeated in four races including the Daily Hai Nisai Stakes and the Asahi Hai Futurity Stakes and won the JRA Award for Best Two-Year-Old Colt. In his first two races of 2019 he was beaten in the Tokinominoru Kinen and the Satsuki Sho before returning to winning form to take the NHK Mile Cup. In December he won the Hong Kong Mile. He failed to win in 2020 but ran third in both the Mile Championship and the Hong Kong Mile.
Al Ain, is a Japanese Thoroughbred racehorse. After winning two minor races in the autumn of 2016 he made significant improvement in the following spring to take the Mainichi Hai and the Satsuki Sho. Later that year he finished fifth in the Tokyo Yushun and second in the St Lite Kinen. As a four-year-old in 2018 he failed to win in six starts but ran well in several major races, finishing third in the Osaka Hai and the Mile Championship and fourth in the autumn edition of the Tenno Sho. In 2019 he recorded his first victory in almost two years when he won the Osaka Hai.
Indy Champ is a Japanese Thoroughbred racehorse. After winning his only start as a juvenile in 2017 he showed good form in the following year when he won three races and finished third in the Mainichi Hai. He emerged as a top-class performer in 2019 winning the Tokyo Shimbun Hai in February and going to take both of Japan's open age Grade 1 mile races, the Yasuda Kinen and the Mile Championship. In the following years he won the Yomiuri Milers Cup and was placed in both the Yasuda Kinen and the Mile Championship.
Resistencia is a Japanese Thoroughbred racehorse. She was the leading juvenile filly in Japan in 2019 when she was unbeaten in three starts including the Fantasy Stakes and the Hanshin Juvenile Fillies. In 2020 she ran second in both the Oka Sho and the NHK Mile Cup.
