In horse racing, it is simply a fact that the strong win and the weak lose.
Each year, only 18 horses out of an entire generation get to compete in the glamorous Japanese Derby. This year, 7,398 3-year-olds competed fiercely for the privilege. But the sad fact outside the spotlight is those that quietly retire without ever finishing first outnumber those that do.
Under the rules of the Japan Racing Association, horses that win at least once by the summer of the year they turn 3 years old are allowed to compete in the following fall and beyond. Eventually, however, the moment arrives when all racehorses must retire, whether they are competing at Grade 1 — the top tier of the system’s pyramidal structure — or languishing at its base.