The Tennō Shō (天皇賞, "Emperor's Prize") is a horse race held twice a year in Japan, once in the spring and once in the autumn. "Tenno" means "Emperor of Japan". The races are both International Grade I races. Prior to the 2007 races, both Tenno Sho races were Japanese domestic Grade I races.[1]

Spring

Tenno Sho (Spring)
Int'l Grade 1 race
Justin Palace winning the 167th Tenno Sho
LocationKyoto Racecourse, Kyoto
Inaugurated1938
Race typeThoroughbred
Websitejapanracing.jp
Race information
Distance3200 meters
(About 16 furlongs / 2 miles)
SurfaceTurf
TrackRight-handed
Qualification4-y-o & Up, Thoroughbreds
Weight4-y-o & up 58 kg
Allowances
2 kg for fillies and mares
Purse¥ 475,200,000 (as of 2023)
1st: ¥ 220,000,000
BonusesWinner of Osaka Hai, Tenno Sho (Spring), Takarazuka Kinen[2]
Domestic: ¥ 200,000,000
International: ¥ 100,000,000

The Spring Tenno Sho is held at Kyoto Racecourse, in late April or early May. It is run over a distance of 3,200 metres (10,500 ft), making it the longest Grade I race in Japan.

Deep Impact won the 2006 version of the race setting the world record for a 3200 metre race with a time of 3:13.4. beating the World Record set in the 1988 Wellington Cup by Daria’s Fun, held for almost 20 years of 3:15.59, the closest time run in The Melbourne Cup is 3:16.3. [3][4] Deep Impact's record stood until Kitasan Black won in 3:12.5 in 2017. The average time 1990-2018 of the Tenno Sho is 3:16.7, the Melbourne Cup 3:21.1, a difference of 4.4 seconds.

Winners since 1990

Year
 Winner
 Age
 Jockey
 Trainer
 Owner
 Time
1990 Super Creek 5 Yutaka Take Syuuji Itou Makoto Kikura 3:21.9
1991 Mejiro McQueen 4 Yutaka Take Yasuo Ikee Mejiro Stud 3:18.8
1992 Mejiro McQueen 5 Yutaka Take Yasuo Ikee Mejiro Stud 3:20.0
1993 Rice Shower 4 Hitoshi Matoba Yoshitsugu Iizuka Hideo Kurabayashi 3:17.1
1994 Biwa Hayahide[a] 4 Yukio Okabe Mitsumasa Hamada Biwa Co Ltd 3:22.6
1995 Rice Shower 6 Hitoshi Matoba Yoshitsugu Iizuka Hideo Kurabayashi 3:19.9
1996 Sakura Laurel 5 Norihiro Yokoyama Katsutarou Sakai Sakura Commerce 3:17.8
1997 Mayano Top Gun 5 Seiki Tabara Masahiro Sakaguchi Yuu Tadokoro 3:14.4
1998 Mejiro Bright 4 Hiroshi Kawachi Hidekazu Asami Mejiro Stud 3:15.3
1999 Special Week 4 Yutaka Take Toshiaki Shirai Hiroyoshi Usuda 3:17.1
2000 T M Opera O 4 Ryuji Wada Ichizo Iwamoto Masatsugu Takezono 3:17.6
2001 T M Opera O 5 Ryuji Wada Ichizo Iwamoto Masatsugu Takezono 3:16.2
2002 Manhattan Cafe 4 Masayoshi Ebina Futoshi Kojima Ken Nishikawa 3:19.5
2003 Hishi Miracle 4 Koichi Tsunoda Masaru Sayama Masaichiro Abe 3:17.0
2004 Ingrandire 5 Norihiro Yokoyama Yoshinami Shimizu Chizu Yoshida 3:18.4
2005 Suzuka Mambo 4 Katsumi Ando Mitsuru Hashida Keiji Nagai 3:16.5
2006 Deep Impact 4 Yutaka Take Yasuo Ikee Makoto Kaneko 3:13.4
2007 Meisho Samson 4 Mamoru Ishibashi Shigetada Takahashi Yoshio Matsumoto 3:14.1
2008 Admire Jupiter 5 Yasunari Iwata Yasuo Tomomichi Riichi Kondo 3:15.1
2009 Meiner Kitz 6 Masami Matsuoka Sakae Kunieda Ruffian Thoroughbred Club 3:14.4
2010 Jaguar Mail 6 Craig Williams Noriyuki Hori Ken Yoshida 3:15.7
2011 Hiruno d'Amour 4 Shinji Fujita Mitsugu Kon Hashimoto Bokujo 3:20.6
2012 Beat Black 5 Syu Ishibashi Hitoshi Nakamura Koji Maeda 3:13.8
2013 Fenomeno 4 Masayoshi Ebina Hirofumi Toda Sunday Racing 3:14.2
2014 Fenomeno 5 Masayoshi Ebina Hirofumi Toda Sunday Racing 3:15.1
2015 Gold Ship 6 Norihiro Yokoyama Naosuke Sugai Kobayashi Eiichi Holdings 3:14.7
2016 Kitasan Black 4 Yutaka Take Hisashi Shimizu Ono Shoji 3:15.3
2017 Kitasan Black 5 Yutaka Take Hisashi Shimizu Ono Shoji 3:12.5
2018 Rainbow Line 5 Yasunari Iwata Hidekazu Asami Masahiro Mita 3:16.2
2019 Fierement 4 Christophe Lemaire Takahisa Tezuka Sunday Racing 3:15.0
2020 Fierement 5 Christophe Lemaire Takahisa Tezuka Sunday Racing 3:16.5
2021 World Premiere[b] 5 Yuichi Fukunaga Yasuo Tomomichi Ryoichi Otsuka 3:14.7
2022 Titleholder[b] 4 Kazuo Yokoyama Toru Kurita Hiroshi Yamada 3:16.2
2023 Justin Palace 4 Christophe Lemaire Haruki Sugiyama Masahiro Miki 3:16.1

a The 1994 race was contested at Hanshin Racecourse.[5]
b The 2021 and 2022 races were contested at Hanshin Racecourse, due to construction at Kyoto Racecourse.[6]

Earlier winners

  • 1938 - Hase Park
  • 1939 - Sugenuma
  • 1940 - Toki no Chikara
  • 1941 - Marutake
  • 1942 - Minami Mor[7]
  • 1943 - Grand Lite
  • 1944 - Hiro Sakura
  • 1945 - No race
  • 1946 - No race
  • 1947 - Olite[8]
  • 1948 - Cyma[9][10]
  • 1949 - Miharu O
  • 1950 - Owens
  • 1951 - Takakura Yama
  • 1952 - Mitsuhata
  • 1953 - Leda
  • 1954 - Hakuryou
  • 1955 - Taka O
  • 1956 - Meiji Hikari
  • 1957 - Kitano O
  • 1958 - Onward There
  • 1959 - Tosa O
  • 1960 - Kuripero
  • 1961 - Yamanin More[11]
  • 1962 - Onslaught[12]
  • 1963 - Korehisa
  • 1964 - Hikaru Pola[13]
  • 1965 - Asahoko
  • 1966 - Hakuzuikou
  • 1967 - Speed Symboli
  • 1968 - Hikarutakai
  • 1969 - Takeshiba O
  • 1970 - Riki Eikan
  • 1971 - Mejiro Musashi
  • 1972 - Bell Wide
  • 1973 - Tai Tehm[14]
  • 1974 - Take Hope
  • 1975 - Ichifuji Isami
  • 1976 - Erimo George
  • 1977 - Ten Point
  • 1978 - Green Grass
  • 1979 - Kashuu Chikara
  • 1980 - Nichidou Taro
  • 1981 - Katsura no Haiseiko
  • 1982 - Monte Prince
  • 1983 – Amber Shadai
  • 1984 – Monte Fast
  • 1985 - Symboli Rudolf
  • 1986 - Kushiro King
  • 1987 - Miho Shinzan
  • 1988 - Tamamo Cross
  • 1989 - Inari One

Autumn

Tenno Sho (Autumn)
Int'l Grade 1 race
Equinox winning the 168th Tenno Sho
LocationTokyo Racecourse, Fuchu, Tokyo
Inaugurated1937
Race typeThoroughbred
Websitejapanracing.jp
Race information
Distance2000 meters
(About 10 furlongs / 1+1⁄4 miles)
SurfaceTurf
TrackLeft-handed
Qualification3-y-o & Up, Thoroughbreds
Weight3-y-o 56 kg \ 4-y-o & up 58 kg
Allowances
2 kg for fillies and mares
Purse¥ 475,200,000 (as of 2023)
1st: ¥ 220,000,000
BonusesWinner of Tenno Sho (Autumn), Japan Cup, Arima Kinen[15]
Domestic: ¥ 200,000,000
International: ¥ 100,000,000

The Autumn Tenno Sho is held at Tokyo Racecourse, in late October. It is run over a distance of 2,000 metres (6,600 ft). It is considered the first leg of the Japanese Autumn Triple Crown (the other two are the Japan Cup and the Arima Kinen).

Originally, the Autumn Tenno Sho was run over a distance of 3,200 metres (10,500 ft), but was shortened to its current distance to promote middle-distance horses and to promote 3-year-old horses as a shorter-distance alternative to the Kikuka Sho, the Japanese St. Leger, which is 3,000 metres (9,800 ft).

Winners since 1990

Year
 Winner
 Age
 Jockey
 Trainer
 Owner
 Time
1990 Yaeno Muteki 5 Yukio Okabe Mitsuo Ogino Fuji Co 1:58.2
1991 Prekrasnie* 4 Teruo Eda Terumaso Yano Eijiro Tajima 2:03.9
1992 Let's Go Tarquin 5 Akikasu Osaki Kojiro Hashiguchi Diners Club Japan 1:58.6
1993 Yamanin Zephyr 4 Masao Shibata Hiromu Kurita Tadashi Doi 1:58.9
1994 Nehai Caesar 4 Katsumi Shiomura Akira Huse Daimaru Enterprise 1:58.6
1995 Sakure Chitose O 5 Futoshi Kojima Katsutarao Sakai Sakura Commerce 1:58.8
1996 Bubble Gum Fellow 3 Masayoshi Ebina Kazuo Fujisawa Shadai Racehorse 1:58.7
1997 Air Groove 4 Yutaka Take Yasunori Ito Lucky Field Co Ltd 1:59.0
1998 Offside Trap 7 Yoshitomi Shibata Shuho Kato Takashi Watanabe 1:59.3
1999 Special Week 4 Yutaka Take Toshiaki Shirai Hiroyoshi Usuda 1:58.0
2000 T M Opera O 4 Ryuji Wada Ichizo Iwamoto Masatsugu Takezono 1:59.9
2001 Agnes Digital 4 Hirofumi Shii Toshiaki Shirai Takao Watanabe 2:02.0
2002 Symboli Kris S 3 Yukio Okabe Kazuo Fujisawa Symboli Stud 1:58.5
2003 Symboli Kris S 4 Olivier Peslier Kazuo Fujisawa Symboli Stud 1:58.0
2004 Zenno Rob Roy 4 Olivier Peslier Kazuo Fujisawa Shinobu Osako 1:58.9
2005 Heavenly Romance 5 Mikio Matsunaga Masashi Yamamoto Nosohiruzu Management 2:00.1
2006 Daiwa Major 5 Katsumi Ando Hiroyuki Uehara Keizou Ooshiro 1:58.8
2007 Meisho Samson 4 Yutaka Take Shigetada Takahashi Yoshio Matsumoto 1:58.4
2008 Vodka 4 Yutaka Take Katsuhiko Sumii Yuzo Tanimizu 1:57.2
2009 Company# 8 Norihiro Yokoyama Hidetaka Otonashi Eiko Kondou 1:57.2
2010 Buena Vista 4 Christophe Soumillon Hiroyoshi Matsuda Sunday Racing Co Ltd 1:58.2
2011 Tosen Jordan 5 Nicola Pinna Yasutoshi Ikee Takaya Shimakawa 1:56.1
2012 Eishin Flash 5 Mirco Demuro Hideaki Fujiwara Toyomitsu Hirai 1:57.3
2013 Just A Way 4 Yuichi Fukunaga Naosuke Sugai Akatsuki Yamatoya 1:57.5
2014 Spielberg 5 Hiroshi Kitamura Kazuo Fujisawa Hidetoshi Yamamoto 1:59.7
2015 Lovely Day 5 Suguru Hamanaka Yasutoshi Ikee Kaneko Makoto Holdings 1:58.4
2016 Maurice 5 Ryan Moore Noriyuki Hori Kazumi Yoshida 1:59.3
2017 Kitasan Black 5 Yutaka Take Hisashi Shimizu Ono Shoji 2:08.3
2018 Rey de Oro 4 Christophe Lemaire Kazuo Fujisawa U Carrot Farm 1:56.8
2019 Almond Eye 4 Christophe Lemaire Sakae Kunieda Silk Racing 1:56.2
2020 Almond Eye 5 Christophe Lemaire Sakae Kunieda Silk Racing 1:57.8
2021 Efforia 3 Takeshi Yokoyama Yuichi Shikato Carrot Farm 1:57.9
2022 Equinox 3 Christophe Lemaire Tetsuya Kimura Silk Racing 1:57.5
2023 Equinox 4 Christophe Lemaire Tetsuya Kimura Silk Racing 1:55.2
* Mejiro McQueen finished first in 1991 but was demoted to last place following a Stewards' Inquiry.
@ The 2002 Autumn Tennō Shō was contested at Nakayama Racecourse, due to construction at Tokyo Racecourse.
# Also Japanese record of flat racing for oldest horse winning first G1 race.

Earlier winners

  • 1937 – Happy Might
  • 1938 - Hisatomo
  • 1939 - Tetsumon
  • 1940 – Rocky Mor[16]
  • 1941 - Estates
  • 1942 - Ni Patois
  • 1943 - Kuri Hikari
  • 1944 - No race
  • 1945 - No race
  • 1946 - No race
  • 1947 - Toyo Ume
  • 1948 - Katsu Fuji
  • 1949 - Newford
  • 1950 - Yashima Daughter
  • 1951 - Hatakaze
  • 1952 - Track O
  • 1953 - Queen Narubi
  • 1954 - Opal Orchid[17]
  • 1955 - Dainana Hoshu
  • 1956 - Midfarm
  • 1957 - Hakuchikara
  • 1958 - Cellulose[18]
  • 1959 - Garnet
  • 1960 - Ote Mon
  • 1961 - Takamagahara
  • 1962 - Kurihide
  • 1963 - Ryu Forel
  • 1964 - Yamato Kyodai
  • 1965 - Shinzan
  • 1966 - Korehide
  • 1967 - Kabuto Ciro
  • 1968 - Knit Eight
  • 1969 - Mejiro Taiyo
  • 1970 - Mejiro Asama
  • 1971 - Tomei
  • 1972 - Yamanin Wave
  • 1973 - Tani no Chikara
  • 1974 - Kami no Tesio
  • 1975 - Fujino Parthia
  • 1976 - Eyeful
  • 1977 - Hokuto Boy
  • 1978 - Tenmei
  • 1979 - Three Giants
  • 1980 - Pretty Cast
  • 1981 - Hoyo Boy
  • 1982 - Mejiro Titan
  • 1983 - Kyoei Promise
  • 1984 - Mr. C.B.
  • 1985 - Gallop Dyna
  • 1986 - Sakura Yutaka O
  • 1987 - Nippo Teio
  • 1988 - Tamamo Cross
  • 1989 - Super Creek

Multiple winners

Prior to 1980, a horse winning a Tennō Shō races was not allowed to participate in future editions of the race but this ban was lifted in 1981. Only two horses won the prize three times:

Apart from Kitasan Black and T M Opera O, four horses to date have won consecutive runnings, either by winning both the Spring and Autumn races in the same year or by winning the Autumn race, and following year's Spring race.

Five horses have won two non-consecutive runnings.

See also

References

Spring

Autumn

  1. ↑ "2011.10.25 Tenno Sho (Autumn) (G1) - Preview - News - Horse Racing in Japan". Japanracing.jp. Retrieved 2012-03-25.
  2. ↑ "平成２９年度競馬番組等について" (PDF) (in Japanese). Japan Racing Association.
  3. ↑ "Results from the 7.40 race at KYOTO (JPN) - 30 April 2006". Racing Post. Retrieved 2012-03-25.
  4. ↑ "Drought ends with a week's free vision - Horseracing - Sport". smh.com.au. Retrieved 2012-03-25.
  5. ↑ "第109回　天皇賞（春）（ＧＩ）" (in Japanese). Japan Racing Association. Retrieved 13 July 2022.
  6. ↑ "令和３年度の重賞競走の主な変更点について" (PDF) (in Japanese). 日本中央競馬会. 19 October 2020. Retrieved 6 April 2021.
  7. ↑ JBIS Japan Bloodstock Information System (Japan Bloodhorse Breeders' Association)
  8. ↑ JBIS Japan Bloodstock Information System (Japan Bloodhorse Breeders' Association)
  9. ↑ Family Tables of Racinghorses Vol.IV, Edited by Thoroughbred Pedigree Center / In collaboration with France Galop,Published by Japan Racing Association and The Japan Bloodhorse Breeders' Association,2003
  10. ↑ According to Romanization of Japanese,Shîmâ(pronounced as 'seemer').
  11. ↑ JBIS Japan Bloodstock Information System (Japan Bloodhorse Breeders' Association)
  12. ↑ JBIS Japan Bloodstock Information System (Japan Bloodhorse Breeders' Association)
  13. ↑ JBIS Japan Bloodstock Information System (Japan Bloodhorse Breeders' Association)
  14. ↑ JBIS Japan Bloodstock Information System (Japan Bloodhorse Breeders' Association)
  15. ↑ "同一年度に本会が定める競走に優勝した馬に対する褒賞金交付基準" (PDF) (in Japanese). Japan Racing Association.
  16. ↑ JBIS Japan Bloodstock Information System (Japan Bloodhorse Breeders' Association)
  17. ↑ JBIS Japan Bloodstock Information System (Japan Bloodhorse Breeders' Association)
  18. ↑ JBIS Japan Bloodstock Information System (Japan Bloodhorse Breeders' Association)
  19. ↑ "天皇賞(春)". Netkeiba.
  20. ↑ "Tenno Sho (Spring)". Netkeiba.
  21. ↑ "天皇賞(秋)". Netkeiba.
  22. ↑ "Tenno Sho (Autumn)". Netkeiba.
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