ENGLISH TEXTS
It is not only the selection criteria and racing programme which distinguishes Japanese breeding it is also the dominant role played by the Shadai Group. Indeed, among the trio of Arc contenders Alohi Alii is the exception as he is not owned by, nor was he bred by, the Shadai Group even if his sire stands at Shadai and his dam Espoir was bred by Katsumi Yoshida’ s Northern Farm. The Shadai Group currently stands nine of Japan’ s top ten sires, the exception is Big Red Farm’ s Gold Ship. Between the three farms the Shadai Group owns around 15 % of the mares in Japan and dominates the best races. At the time of writing there have been 84 different Group winners in Japan this year and ten Group 1 winners, of whom 39( 46 %) and 7( 70 %) were bred by either Shadai or Northern Farm. Shadai’ s racing clubs and syndicates, Shadai, Sunday and G1 Thoroughbred Clubs and Shadai Group Owners are among the most prominent in Japan and the Group also hosts and organises the JRHA Summer Sale, the most significant auction where around 450 yearlings and foals are sold, this year at an average price of around 450.000 €. In Japan traditionally the best racing prospects were sold as foals in private deals soon after they were born. Shadai has played a key role in developing auctions and of the 84 2025 Group winners 14( 17 %) were sold at the Summer Sale and another seven
( 8 %) at other auctions, the most important of which is the Hokkaido Summer Sale. However only about 30 % of all foals go through an auction, it is more like 65 % in Britain and Ireland and 50 % in France, and so if Japanese breeding, and the Shadai Group in particular, are now recognised international leaders, it remains difficult for outsiders to buy the best bloodstock. Coolmore, the Wertheimer brothers and a handful of other European breeders send mares to be covered in Japan every year, even if it is an expensive project with duties to be paid to export horses out of Japan on the way back to Europe. The results have been spectacular with Classic winners and stallions Study of Man, Saxon Warrior and Auguste Rodin emerging from the small number of foals brought back to Europe. When it finally arrives a Japanese bred winner of the Prix de l’ Arc de Triomphe will only be a confirmation of the transformation of Japanese breeding into a world leader which has been very evident for years and Croix du Nord, Alohi Alii and Byzantine Dream are just the latest of many indicators of excellence.
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TRAINER
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By Katherine Ford
HARRY DUNLOP LISTENING TO HIS FORMER COLLEAGUES
A Group 1-winning trainer from a long-established racing family, Harry Dunlop handed in his license at the end of 2022. The man behind Robin of Navan( Criterium de Saint-Cloud, Gr. 1) and several other Group winners across Europe, cited at the time the economic difficulties facing the profession. Today, Harry Dunlop devotes himself to various activities in the fields of art and landscaping, but he remains closely involved in racing through an initiative to support trainers.“ It’ s simply called the Trainers Support Network. The idea came to me just before I ended my training career, when a professional approached me on the Lambourn gallops. He was not in a good emotional state. His horses weren’ t running well and financially things were getting complicated. We chatted a little and then went our separate ways. I wondered who he was going to turn to …” While jockeys and stable staff benefit from mental health support through the Professional Jockeys Association and Racing Welfare respectively, the idea grew to provide suitable assistance
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