Japan Cup Recap

By Lucas Marquardt

There are lots of anecdotes that speak to Japan’s way of doing things. Here’s a short one. Two hours after the conclusion of one of the country’s biggest races, Sunday’s G1 Japan Cup, the public areas at Tokyo Racecourse were almost spotless. That was after hosting just over 100,000 people. 

Forget about betting slips and beer bottles, there are still people strewn about two hours after the Kentucky Derby. 
The late-evening walk through the empty track put an end to my stint covering the 2014 Japan Cup, though I still have another week or so in Japan before heading to Hong Kong for the International Races Dec. 14. It was my first time in Japan and, no surprise, the trip and the Cup itself made a big impression. 

Tokyo Racecourse, about 15 miles due west of downtown in the suburb of Fuchu, is reminiscent of Belmont Park in its layout, and is even more mammoth in scope. Built in 1933, it holds a staggering 223,000 fans, making it the world’s largest racing venue by a long way. Churchill, by comparison, tops out at 165,000, the no-infield Belmont at 90,000. There’s a big infield area at Tokyo, but it didn’t seem overly populated Sunday. 

Tokyo’s record attendance–196,517, set in 1990– actually falls well short of capacity, and the track is so spacious that even with 100,000 people on hand, things really didn’t feel that crowded on Japan Cup day. There are just so many places to spread out–around the huge parade ring out back, at the indoor food court, in an infield that included a bouncy castle and a playground for children. At the southern end of the track, a small wooded park with a two-story pirate ship gave parents another option, while families spread out picnic blankets on a grassy hill that overlooked the far turn. There was even a garden with a water feature out back–that was a new one. 

The two big takeaways for me were the crowd’s youth, and its knowledge base. Walking around, I’d guess at least half of the crowd were under 35. In the States, you either have an older crowd, or a younger crowd there as much for the fashion and fun as the races themselves. Here, no one dressed up. There were no suits or slinky dresses. But there were still thousands of hip young men pointing at racing forms. Attractive ladies in groups of three and four quietly handicapped and filled out betting slips. There was no ‘see and be seen’ aspect to it. I’m not saying that’s good or bad, just different. 

The crowd also seemed to know their racing and be passionate about it. It’s not often that a starter gets a roar from the crowd, like what happened before the Japan Cup when the starter, dressed something ike a Cold War-era military official, made his way to an elevated stand. 

The track’s gift shop underscored how attached fans get to their racing heroes here. Horses old and new were celebrated on Christmas ornaments, key fobs, ashtrays and iPhone protective cases. There were t-shirts of Sunday Silence and of his son Deep Impact (Jpn), and plush toys of current stars like Gentildonna (Jpn). Moreover, the shop was packed. 
Outside, fans took their picture with a bronze statue of the 2009 Japan Cup winner and $13.1 million earner Vodka (Jpn). A Gentildonna banner hung above one entrance. 

The parade ring, like I said, is big–maybe around the same size of Keeneland’s larger paddock, and can be viewed from dozens of different vantage points, including from the grandstand’s large back balconies. There were easily several thousand people that watched as the Japan Cup contestants were led around, and yet it was wholly quiet, except for the odd murmur here and there. From the parade ring, the horses are led down a wide tunnel under the grandstand that leads up to the turf course. It’s interesting–when the horses complete a race they return to widened section of the tunnel to be unsaddled, and with the jockeys still aboard and the horses cantering back on the rubber flooring, the sound and feel in your chest of 18 horses heading toward you indoors is somewhat surreal. 

It was getting dark by the time the Japan Cup horses were introduced onto the turf, and despite it being pleasantly warm, Mt. Fuji, which can often be seen in the distance from the grandstand, remained hidden in the low grey clouds. A military brass band provided a dramatic soundtrack as the horses lined up behind the gate, and the crowd clapped along in unison to a crescendo that indicated the race was about to go off. 

The 4-year-old Epiphaneia (Jpn) (Symboli Kris S) ran a fine race in victory, and jockey Christophe Soumillon earned his money, keeping the headstrong colt together and waiting until it was absolutely necessary to let him loose in the stretch. There weren’t many hard-luck stories in the bunch. Both runner-up Just a Way (Jpn) (Heart’s Cry {Jpn}) and fourth-placed Gentildonna (Jpn) (Deep Impact {Jpn}) had relatively clear runs and just weren’t good enough; it was the same story for the yellow-bridled Harp Star (Jpn) (Deep Impact {Jpn}), who came with a modest outside rally to be fifth. 

If he goes, the horse to bet back in the G1 Arima Kinen at Nakayama Dec. 28 might be the show horse Spielberg (Jpn) (Deep Impact {Jpn}). Third last early, the Tenno Shot (Autumn) winner was one of the few to make up serious ground, and did so after encountering some traffic in the lane. We’ll keep you posted. 

Well, that’s it for this leg of the journey. A big thanks to the JRA (Japan Racing Association) and the JAIRS (Japan Association for International Racing and Stud Book) for their hospitality–a great, dedicated and patient group of people. On to Hokkaido now for a short visit to Harry Sweeney’s Paca Paca Farm, as well stops at Shadai Stallion Station and the Japan Bloodstock Breeders’ Association, home to, among others, Empire Maker and the retired Forty Niner. Stay tuned, and be sure to click on the video links below for a virtual tour of Tokyo Racecourse!