Japan Aims to Cure Ascot Woes in July's King George

Although Japanese-trained horses have been performing well in international races around the world in recent years, there are impregnable races and tracks for Japanese horses. Well known to the people is the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe (G1) at Longchamp in October. A Japanese-trained horse has never won Europe's premier 1 1/2-mile championship race, despite sending their best middle-distance contenders to Paris nearly every year to claim the race—the nation has had to settle for a runner-up finish four times. Another such track for Japan is Ascot Racecourse in the United Kingdom, where Agnes World finished second in the 2000 King's Stand Stakes (G1), Heart's Cry finished third in the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes (G1) in 2006, and Satono Reve (JPN) finished second in the 2025 Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Stakes (G1). Japanese-trained horses have never won a race at the Royal track in the U.K., and history repeated itself June 20 when Satono Reve, owned by Hajime Satomi, ran a huge race in the Queen Elizabeth to finish second once again. The winner was Almeraq (GB), a 25-1 outsider, who won by a nose. Winning a major race at Ascot remains a coveted dream for Japanese racing. Japan will pursue this goal at the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes July 25, where they will be represented by Shadai Race Horse's Masquerade Ball (JPN) and Teruya Yoshida's Wurttemberg (JPN).