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May 03, 2024
 

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Barbara Bayer
For Barbara Bayer's latest contributions to The Japan Times, see below:
Japan Times
MORE SPORTS
May 27, 2002
Tanino Gimlet wins Derby as Koizumi looks on
"The luckiest horse wins the Derby," they say in Japan.
MORE SPORTS
May 20, 2002
Fourth pick stages Oaks upset
This year's 3-year-old classics brought yet another surprise as fourth-pick Smile Tomorrow staged an upset, besting the Oaks full-gate by a length and half. Capping the upset was 12th-pick Chapel Concert, 3/4 of a length ahead of the heavily betted Yu Carat. Race favorite Shinin' Ruby failed to spark finishing in fifth place.
COMMUNITY
May 12, 2002
Straight from the trainer's mouth
Japan's racing world is steeped in tradition. Many trainers are former jockeys or come from long-established racing families. Nobuhiro Suzuki, 42, is one of a new breed of trainer: outsiders, usually highly educated. Suzuki gained his training license in 1997 after working as a veterinarian, groom and assistant trainer. He is also a skilled equestrian. Based at Miho Training Center in Ibaraki Prefecture, he currently ranks No. 4 by wins at Miho, No. 10 overall. Since his debut, his horses have notched 68 wins in 687 races.
COMMUNITY
May 12, 2002
Born to ride -- and to win
Veteran jockey Yukio Okabe is a legend in Japanese racing, perhaps best-known for his partnership with Triple Crown winner Symboli Rudolf. At 53, he is Japan's most senior rider, and has won awards in 27 of his 34 years as a jockey. As national racing's record-holder for number of rides, with more than 17,550, and for his 2,816 wins, he recently made a comeback following a starting-gate accident in which he suffered whiplash and the temporary loss of use of his right arm.
COMMUNITY
May 12, 2002
The King of Sports .... in the land of emperors
Some 15 years ago, I found racing -- or perhaps you could say that it found me. Free tickets to the international Japan Cup took me to Tokyo Race Course and marked the beginning of a continuing affair with the horses.
MORE SPORTS
Apr 30, 2002
Manhattan Cafe captures spring Emperor's Cup
Manhattan Cafe scooped the prize at Kyoto in the spring Emperor's Cup holding off Jungle Pocket by a neck for 132 million yen and a perfect three-for-three Grade 1 record.
MORE SPORTS
Apr 16, 2002
Rank outsider turns in Satsukisho stunner
FUNABASHI, Chiba Pref. -- The majority of fans saw no reason to back the colt in the No. 2 spot of Sunday's Satsukisho, Japan's equivalent of the 2,000 Guineas and the first leg of its triple crown. But no reason was all the reason, for the colt by that very name upset the competition for a stunning length-and-three-quarters record win and an 11,590 payoff on a 100 wager.
MORE SPORTS
Apr 8, 2002
Arrow Carry bags jewel
TAKARAZUKA, Hyogo Pref. -- The 62nd running of the Okasho (Japan's equivalent of the 1,000 Guineas) went to longshot Arrow Carry, which turned the tables on the top picks to win by 1 1/4 length.
MORE SPORTS
Feb 19, 2002
Agnes Digital runs streak to five
Agnes Digital extended his winning streak to five Sunday as the American-bred son of Crafty Prospector bested a star-studded field of 16 for a length win in the February Stakes at Tokyo Racecourse.
MORE SPORTS
Dec 24, 2001
Manhattan Cafe wins Arima Memorial
FUNABASHI, Chiba Pref. -- Manhattan Cafe and American Boss turned the tables on top picks T.M. Opera O and Meisho Doto as they wrapped up the Arima Memorial race Sunday with a 1-2 finish that capped the Japanese racing year with a decidely un-Japanese ring.
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Dec 11, 2001
Admire Don tops Futurity Stakes
FUNABASHI, Chiba Pref. -- Race favorite Admire Don, with Shinji Fujita up, stepped into the limelight for next year's classics as he bested the 16 colts of the Asahi Hai Futurity Stakes on Sunday at Nakayama Racecourse.
MORE SPORTS
Dec 3, 2001
Tamuro Cherry tops fillies' G1
Dark horses toppled the top picks Sunday at Hanshin Racecourse as seventh choice Tamuro Cherry and ninth pick Arrow Carry raced to a one-two finish in the Hanshin Juvenile Fillies.
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Nov 26, 2001
Jungle Pocket takes Japan Cup
Japan-trained horses monopolized the scene yet again as they swept the top spots in the Japan Cup at Tokyo Racecourse on Sunday, the second day of the year's biggest international racing event here. It was the fourth-straight Japan Cup victory for the home team, a first in the event's 21-year history.
MORE SPORTS
Nov 25, 2001
Kurofune outclasses field by seven lengths
The home team sent the foreign competition packing as it swept the top seven places in the second running of the Japan Cup Dirt at Tokyo Racecourse on Saturday. Favorite Kurofune continued to rewrite the books as he led the field of 16 over the wire by seven lengths in a record time of 2 minutes, 5.9 seconds.
MORE SPORTS
Oct 29, 2001
Agnes Digital gallops to Emperor's Cup win
Fall top-level racing produced its second major upset in a week as champion miler Agnes Digital outran a highly touted super trio led by T.M. Opera O to win the 2,000-meter Emperor's Cup on Sunday on the rain-soaked turf at Tokyo Racecourse.
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Oct 22, 2001
Manhattan Cafe captures Kikkasho
KYOTO -- Japan's triple crown wrapped up with a surprise ending as dark horses captured the top two spots in the 3,000-meter Kikkasho on Sunday. Stunned fans sent waves of murmured disbelief through the stands as sixth pick Manhattan Cafe crossed the line a half length ahead of 11th choice Meiner Despot. More stunning than their moves, perhaps, were the lackluster ones of the rest of the 15-strong field of 3-year-olds, including Derby winner Jungle Pocket and runnerup Dantsu Flame.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Oct 21, 2001
Women with fists of fury
"We're in uncharted territory," was how ABC sports commentator Dan Dierdorf began his announcement of the first women's professional boxing match on U.S. network television. That was in 1997.
MORE SPORTS
Jun 25, 2001
Meisho Doto claims Takarazuka
Meisho Doto at long last turned the tables on archrival T.M. Opera O as he staged a 1 1/4-length upset in Sunday's Takarazuka Memorial.
MORE SPORTS
May 28, 2001
Jungle Pocket wins 68th Japan Derby
Race favorite Jungle Pocket topped the all-male field of 18 and fellow "super trio" horses Dantsu Flame and Kurofune to capture the 68th running of the Japan Derby Sunday at Tokyo Racecourse.
MORE SPORTS
May 25, 2001
Kentucky Derby winner also a success in Japan
California-based American jockey Kent Desormeaux made Japanese racing history this past Sunday as he took home first prize in the prestigious filly classic, the Oaks at Tokyo Racecourse.
Weak yen fattens tourist wallets in Japan
People visit the Ameya Yokocho market in Tokyo's Ueno district during the Golden Week holiday on Tuesday.
Biden calls ally Japan ‘xenophobic’ along with rivals China and Russia
U.S. President Joe Biden speaks in Syracuse, New York, on April 25.
Number of vacant homes in Japan hits record high of 9 million
A vacant house in Tokyo is seen demolished in January 2020.
Saudi Arabia steps up Gaza-related arrests as Israel ties edge closer
The arrests for Gaza-related posts indicate Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s regime will take a hard line against citizens not toeing the line when it comes to normalizing ties with Israel.
'So hot you can't breathe': Extreme heat hits the Philippines
A pedestrian cools himself with a folding hand fan as he waits for a ride along a road in Manila on Wednesday, as extreme heat hit the Philippines.
Kishida sets sights on energy and climate in South America trip
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida will use a policy speech in Sao Paulo to set out his vision for ties between Japan and South America, almost 10 years after former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe advocated for stronger ties between the two in the same city.
Yellow sand allergy: A health issue made worse by climate change
A screenshot of the Meteorological Agency's satellite image of clouds and yellow sand (in pink) on Sunday.
Climate change, chalky grains and the risks for Japan’s rice farmers
A farmer plants seedlings in Satsumasendai, Kagoshima Prefecture. Japan’s self sufficiency rate for rice is nearly 100%, compared with 38% for food overall, on a calorie basis.
Japan wants you to spend more with ‘luxury tourism’
Performers play a traditional drum unique to Wajima, Ishikawa Prefecture, in the prefectural capital of Kanazawa on March 16 to mark the extension of the Hokuriku Shinkansen line to Tsuruga Station in Fukui Prefecture.

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