| Grade 1 race | |
| Location | Kyoto Racecourse, Fushimi-ku, Kyoto, Kyoto Prefecture |
|---|---|
| Inaugurated | 1976 |
| Race type | Thoroughbred |
| Website | japanracing.jp/ |
| Race information | |
| Distance | 2200 meters (About 11 furlongs / 1+3⁄8 miles) |
| Surface | Turf |
| Track | Right-handed |
| Qualification | 3-y-o & Up, Fillies & Mares only, Thoroughbreds |
| Weight | 3-y-o 54 kg \ 4-y-o & up 56 kg |
| Purse | ¥ 200,480,000 (as of 2017) 1st: ¥ 93,000,000 |
The Queen Elizabeth II Cup (Queen Elizabeth II Commemorative Cup until 2012) is an International Grade 1 flat horse race in Japan for three-year-old and above thoroughbred fillies and mares run over a distance of 2,200 metres (approximately 1 mile 3 furlongs) on the turf at Kyoto Racecourse in November.
History[edit]
The race was first run in 1976 over a distance of 2,400 metres (1 mile 4 furlongs). It was originally for three-year-old fillies only and was the third leg of the Japanese Fillies' Triple Crown. In 1996, it was opened to older female horses and was reduced to its present distance. In the same year the Shuka Sho was established and became the third leg of the Fillies' Triple Crown.
Since 1999 it turned into International Grade 1 race. In 2010 Snow Fairy from England, being the first winner outside Japan. The following year she made Japanese flat racing history of being the first ever non-Japanese trained horse to win the same Grade 1 flat race back-to-back (second ever including Steeplechase, which Karasi winning Nakayama Grand Jump between 2005–2007).
It is the only Grade 1 race that is restricted to fillies and mares aged three or above. The other Grade 1 races for older female horses in Japan, the Victoria Mile, excludes three-year-olds.
Records[edit]
Most successful horse (2 wins):
- Mejiro Dober – 1998, 1999
- Admire Groove – 2003, 2004
- Snow Fairy – 2010, 2011
- Lucky Lilac – 2019, 2020
Winners since 1996[edit]
| Year | Winner | Age | Jockey | Trainer | Owner | Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | Sakura Candle | 3 | Futoshi Kojima | Kazunori Sakai | Sakura Commerce | 2:27.3 |
| 1996 | Dance Partner | 4 | Hirofumi Shii | Toshiaki Shirai | Katsumi Yoshida | 2:14.3 |
| 1997 | Erimo Chic | 4 | Hitoshi Matoba | Yoshio Oki | Shinichi Yamamoto | 2:12.5 |
| 1998 | Mejiro Dober | 4 | Yutaka Yoshida | Yokichi Okubo | Mejiro Shoji | 2:12.8 |
| 1999 | Mejiro Dober | 5 | Yutaka Yoshida | Yokichi Okubo | Mejiro Shoji | 2:13.5 |
| 2000 | Phalaenopsis | 5 | Mikio Matsunaga | Mitsumasa Hamada | North Hills Management Co Ltd | 2:12.8 |
| 2001 | To the Victory | 5 | Yutaka Take | Yasuo Ikee | Makoto Kaneko | 2:11.2 |
| 2002 | Fine Motion | 3 | Yutaka Take | Yuji Ito | Tatsuo Fushikida | 2:13.2 |
| 2003 | Admire Groove | 3 | Yutaka Take | Mitsuru Hashida | Riichi Kondo | 2:11.8 |
| 2004 | Admire Groove | 4 | Yutaka Take | Mitsuru Hashida | Riichi Kondo | 2:13.6 |
| 2005 | Sweep Tosho | 4 | Kenichi Ikezoe | Akio Tsurudome | Tosho Sangyo | 2:12.5 |
| 2006 | Fusaichi Pandore [a] | 3 | Yuichi Fukunaga | Toshiaki Shirai | Fusao Sekiguchi | 2:11.6 |
| 2007 | Daiwa Scarlet | 3 | Katsumi Ando | Kunihide Matsuda | Keizo Oshiro | 2:11.9 |
| 2008 | Little Amapola | 3 | Christophe Lemaire | Hiroyuki Nagahama | Shadai Racehorse Co | 2:12.1 |
| 2009 | Queen Spumante | 5 | Hiroyasu Tanaka | Shigeyuki Kojima | Green Farm | 2:13.6 |
| 2010 | Snow Fairy | 3 | Ryan Moore | Ed Dunlop | Anamoine Ltd | 2:12.5 |
| 2011 | Snow Fairy | 4 | Ryan Moore | Ed Dunlop | Anamoine Ltd | 2:11.6 |
| 2012 | Rainbow Dahlia | 5 | Yoshitomi Shibata | Yoshitaka Ninomiya | Yoshiko Tanaka | 2:16.3 |
| 2013 | Meisho Mambo | 3 | Koshiro Take | Akihiro Iida | Yoshio Matsumoto | 2:16.6 |
| 2014 | Lachesis | 4 | Yuga Kawada | Katsuhiko Sumii | Masaya Oshima | 2:12.3 |
| 2015 | Marialite | 4 | Masayoshi Ebina | Takashi Kubota | U Carrot Farm | 2:14.9 |
| 2016 | Queens Ring | 4 | Mirco Demuro | Keiji Yoshimura | Chizu Yoshida | 2:12.9 |
| 2017 | Mozu Katchan | 3 | Mirco Demuro | Ippo Sameshima | Capital System Co. Ltd | 2:14.3 |
| 2018 | Lys Gracieux | 4 | João Moreira | Yoshito Yahagi | U Carrot Farm | 2:13.1 |
| 2019 | Lucky Lilac | 4 | Christophe Soumillon | Mikio Matsunaga | Sunday Racing | 2:14.1 |
| 2020 | Lucky Lilac [b] | 5 | Christophe Lemaire | Mikio Matsunaga | Sunday Racing | 2:10.3 |
a Kawakami Princess finished first in 2006 but was demoted to 12th place following a Stewards' Inquiry.
b The 2020 race took place at Hanshin Racecourse over a distance of 2200 metres.
Earlier winners[edit]
- 1976 – Diamante
- 1977 – Inter Gloria
- 1978 – Lead Swallow
- 1979 – Miss Kaburaya
- 1980 – Hagino Top Lady
- 1981 – Agnes Tesco
- 1982 – Victoria Crown
- 1983 – Long Grace
- 1984 – Kyowa Thunder
- 1985 – Reward Wing
- 1986 – Mejiro Ramonu
- 1987 – Talented Girl
- 1988 – Miyama Poppy
- 1989 – Sand Peeress
- 1990 – Kyoei Tap
- 1991 – Rinden Lily
- 1992 – Takeno Velvet
- 1993 – Hokuto Vega
- 1994 – Hishi Amazon
- 1995 – Sakura Candle
See also[edit]
- Horse racing in Japan
- List of Japanese flat horse races
References[edit]
- Racing Post:
- 1995, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005
- 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015
- 2016
External links[edit]
- Horse Racing in Japan
