ENGLISH TEXTS and his now indispensable presence at all the major international meetings, from Meydan to Del Mar, from Sha Tin to Churchill Downs, Yoshito Yahagi rarely speaks publicly in English. Yet those who know him say he would have no need of his translator. As if the interpreter served as a veil through which he observes his audience and filters his words. A way to have fun and shield himself from the spotlight trained on him and his latest champion, Forever Young, crowned JRA Horse of the Year and the first Japanese horse to win an Eclipse Award in the United States in 2025. With this horse, Yoshito Yahagi surely still has more surprises to pull out of his hat. We pull ours out on him..
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FRIDA VALLE SKAR, THE NEW STAR
BY PAUL CASABIANCA
Arriving in France in 2017 as an amateur rider, Frida Valle Skar, author of a remarkable 2025 season, lined up against some of the best jockeys on the planet in Riyadh at the prestigious Saudi Cup meeting on February 14. A well-deserved and fitting reward for this new star of the French weighing room. Originally from Trondheim, Norway’ s third-largest city, I competed in pony trotting races. At the age of 16, I joined the AFASEC school in Sweden to turn my passion into a profession. I discovered France in 2017 during a summer internship with Anne-Sophie Pacault. I began my apprenticeship the following year with Carlos and Yann Lerner. I rode my first winner on September 7, 2018, when I did not speak a single word of French. In 2025, I won my first Group 2 … Who am I? There is no need to be a regular viewer of French show Question pour un Champion to find the correct answer: Frida Valle Skar. A jockey on the rise, she had the joy of taking part, on February 14, in the Saudi Cup meeting, one of the biggest racing events in the world. Invited by the Saudi Jockey Club, Frida Valle Skar became the first Norwegian in history to compete in the International Jockey’ s Challenge. A debut crowned with a silver medal in this world championship of jockeys, which brought together 14 of the globe’ s best riders:“ I ride more and more winners each year. Last year, I had the chance to win my first Group 2 in Germany and I think it was after that victory that they noticed me and invited me. I believe it had been a very long time since Norway was represented at the start of this International Challenge. It obviously gives me great pleasure to be here. It represents so much for me. All the passion I have put into my work to reach this level is being rewarded today. I hope that this experience and this exposure will open new doors for me and allow me to take on new challenges.”
A Magnificent 2025 Season It is still too early to say whether the 2025 season will be the best of her career, but one thing is certain: Frida Valle Skar is unlikely to forget it, as it was marked by many firsts. Why? First, the Norwegian rider was contacted to travel to Germany for the first time. Aboard Matilda, this first attempt turned into a masterstroke, bringing her first Group 2 victory in the German 2,000 guineas. Second, the rider who shares her life with Gabin Meunier, another rising star( over jumps), achieved, at the age of 27, the first four-timer of her career at Saint-Cloud on November 20. For the record, only her colleague Maryline Eon had accomplished this feat during this century. Third, the 2025 Women’ s Cravache de Bronze winner finished second in a Group 3 with Lesslepasser, a first in France, reached and then surpassed the milestone of 200 winners on March 9, 2025, in Toulouse, before ending her season with 47 victories to her name( including the one achieved in Germany), equalling her personal record set in 2024.“ I hope that 2026 will be as good in terms of results as last year,” she says.“ The goal is also to take part in top races this year and to find a good horse to take me there, that would be the dream. This experience in Riyadh proved to me that it is possible for me to ride at the highest level. I thought that, as a woman coming from abroad, it would be
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