Alankar

Takashi Saito, trainer
“In her last race, her being able to settle was a great gain. The pace was slow and she wasn’t able to make it to the line in front, but finished third. She really gained ground well in the final stage. After that, she went to the farm and returned to the training center when she had about three more fast workouts needed before the race. It can be difficult for a 3-year-old filly to recover easily from a race, but I can see that she has physically improved from her last race. On April 1, she worked under the jockey (Yutaka Take) alongside another horse and there were no concerns about her movement or her connection with the rider. I’m hoping her weight for the race won’t register a minus. I’m sure there are fans of her dam Sinhalite (missed the Oka Sho by a nose). This one didn’t score a G1 at yearend (fifth in the Hanshin Juvenile Fillies) so I’m hoping she’ll win on this cherry blossom stage.”

Black Chalice

Koshiro Take, trainer
“She lost a shoe in the Fantasy Stakes (G3, 1,400m) and that did give her some trouble at that point, but she recovered, moved up slowly and did well, so I then wanted to try her at a mile. In the Fairy Stakes (G3, 1,600m), she got a good position, raced nicely balanced and very well. Then she was off to the farm for a bit. She is always agitated when she comes back to Ritto. But once back into training she settles down. So, with that in mind, I brought her back to the training center early and she’s good now. In fact, I would actually like her to be a bit more on her toes, but I’ll fix that before the race is upon us. She has matured, so we’ve given her ample work and I think she’ll go to the gate in good shape. Up to now the extra distance hasn’t prevented her from getting a good position. Her strongpoint is her good racing sense.”

Dear Diamond

Takahisa Tezuka, trainer
“She’d gotten a lot of work before her most recent race (the Anemone Stakes) and was in great condition, and she won by a good margin (three lengths). After that, she was quite tired from the effort she’d made. It was a good race, both the time and the content. She stayed at Miho and we focused on getting her fully recovered. And, because we have the long trip to the track, which, however, I’m not worried about, we’re being careful not to overdo it in morning work. I’m focusing on maintaining her weight. In the race before that, the Shinzan Kinen (G3, 1,600m), she’d been returning from a setback (fever) that required quite a bit of time off. In that race, she didn’t like the late fast pace and the ground didn’t suit either. Compared to then, she’s moving much better in trackwork now and is easy to ride. If she can draw on what she has, she’ll be right up there with the others, even those with better track records.”

Dream Core

Kiyoshi Hagiwara, trainer
“The Queen Cup was her fourth start and for the first time, she displayed a different burst of speed. I decided to train her at Ritto so we would avoid shipping in right before the race, and also so I could be assured we’d get enough training sessions in. She was training there from April 1. If her return was too close to raceday you’d have to compromise with the workouts. She has adapted well to the new surroundings and everything has gone smoothly since she got to Ritto. The track layouts are different from Miho so it’s a bit difficult to get a feel for them, but we got ample work. Her body weight has increased from her debut and I don’t consider that to be a bad thing. During this immediate period her weight has been about the same as it was for her last start. I think everything is going well going into the race. She and her dam Normcore don’t look alike, but this one has inherited her high ability.”

Elegance Ask

Katsunori Tanaka, trainer
“She ran a strong race in her debut. Her most recent race was only the second race of her career and I think it gave her some good experience. She tensed up, but overall it was a good run. We got her completely recovered from that and from about two weeks ago, she improved dramatically. So, if all continues to go well, I think she’ll be in even better shape by the race. I think that among her peers, she has top potential and has experience over 1,600 meters. We’ll just have to see how well she can do at this point in her career. I’m hoping she’ll give it her best.”

Festival Hill

Hirofumi Shii, trainer
“I hadn’t expected her to start well in the Fantasy Stakes and then with it being 1,400 meters on the outer course. And then watching the race, I had a bad feeling when I saw where she was when turning out of the backstretch. But the jockey really kept his cool and when the path opened up, she gained ground as expected and won. It was a very strong race. After that, we discovered an avulsion fracture in her left foreleg and we sent her to the farm. She returned to the training center on March 17 and the farm had done a good job of building an excellent base. She came back more filled out and she definitely has talent. She is a bit high-strung and can easily get worked up so we’re being careful about that during her preparations. She got experience over 1,400 meters in her most recent race and I definitely think she’ll handle a mile this time well.”

Garavogue

Haruki Sugiyama, trainer
“Her most recent race, the Queen Cup, was her first race in two months. It was run to the left and it’s possible she wasn’t completely at her best. The trip wasn’t the best for her either. I don’t think it was her best performance. Overall, it was a bit lacking. After that, she went to the farm for a bit and jockey Atsuya Nishimura rode work on April 1 along with another horse over six furlongs. This one started behind and caught and passed the other. I didn’t want her to overdo it, so we just focused on the latter stage. If you ask her, she’ll respond well, but compared to how she felt for the Hanshin Juvenile Fillies, I think she’s lacking a bit. She ran well in the Juvenile Fillies (finished 1.25 lengths behind the winner in second place) and the return to that venue will be a plus. It’s a G1 so we’ll just have to see what kind of shape we can have her in by raceday.”

Keiji Yoshimura, trainer
“With an eye to the future, I had thought it would be ideal if she didn’t lead in the Fillies’ Revue, but would get a position further back. However, she held her ground really well and won a ticket here. She has always started well, but from the beginning of this year, she has gotten used to wearing a hood and that has helped her at the break. She went to the farm for a bit and came back looking recovered and refreshed. All has gone well. I had her work at length on April 2 and she covered seven furlongs on the woodchip flat. We pushed her hard in the final stage and she responded well. From her bloodline, I’d have to say 1,400 meters might suit her best, but I think she’ll be able to handle a mile.”

Lily Joie

Koshiro Take, trainer
“Her great effort in the Kobai Stakes took a lot out of her so we skipped the Hanshin Juvenile Fillies. She rested and trained at the farm and returned to Ritto about a month ago. She has now calmed down. She does tend to make a huge effort in her racing, so I go easy on the workouts. She has filled out and I’m glad we were able to give her ample time. The distance is no worry. Key will be being able to relax during the race. She’ll move as much as you ask her to, so in her April 1 work my instructions to jockey Suguru Hamanaka were to not push her too hard. That workout did her well and I rode her this week. I am a bit concerned about the atmosphere on a G1 day. Also, she has a very competitive spirit, so staying balanced is key. She has a fantastic spring to her gait and a wide range of motion. Her stride is big and she does best on a firm surface.”

Longing Celine

Masahiro Takeuchi, trainer
“In the Flower Cup (finished in second), she took the lead from the gate and ran nicely balanced, and stayed very well until the end. After that race, she didn’t get overly worked up, but has been doing just fine. Everything has been going very, very well. This time there are only two full weeks between races and we have the long trip to the track. So, I don’t think there is any need for any hard workouts. Her front-running style stood her well in the 1,800-meter Flower Cup, but there is a limit to how fast she can go, so I don’t think she can lead in the Oka Sho. She’s not difficult so I think she can race from further back, but it would be good if the going was a bit slow.”

Namura Cosmos

Yuki Ohashi, trainer
“In the Kobushi Sho, her weight was down, but she had grown and you could see how much she had matured from last year. She covered the last three furlongs in 33.6 seconds and won handily. In her most recent start, the Tulip Sho, the pace and her position (third) worked well together. The only regret was that she made her move just a bit too soon. Still, we saw that she was competitive against top-level horses. We kept her at the training center and picked up the pace after we were certain she was fully recovered. On April 1, she clocked 83.8 seconds over six furlongs on the woodchip course under jockey Kanta Taguchi. Because she only just raced, we focused only on fine-tuning her breathing. She has maintained a good condition. She’s not high-strung or nervous and has no problems with her eating. The slow increase in distance has brought out her best. I’m expecting a good race.”

Presepio

Kazuhide Sasada, trainer
“She did alright at the break and was patient racing in with the pack, which was something good to take away from the experience. In the final stage it looked like things got too tight for her. She had no room, but the overall race wasn’t bad. She worked with another horse up the hill on April 1 and I had the rider push her pretty hard. Because her workout was a bit late in the morning, the ground was torn up but her movement wasn’t bad. It looks like she’ll go into the race in good shape. She was able to remain patient in her last start (1,400 meters) so I think that will have prepared her for 1,600 meters. The only concern is the break. If she can break well, I’m hoping she’ll bring out her strongpoint, which is her tenacity.”

Keisuke Miyata, trainer
“With her far outside draw in the Anemone Stakes, her start was not especially fast, but she had enough early speed and was able to secure a good position. In the final stage, she stayed on the rail and got to the top early while holding her ground really well. Physically, she’s still not at that place where we can try to get her even stronger. Instead, our goal has been to maintain what she has. On April 2, she worked with a training partner and she changed leads nicely in the stretch. Considering the heavy going, her time was as expected and she is slowly getting stronger. A race that draws on her mobility is what she does well in so I’m not too sure about the Hanshin outer course. I expect her to improve from the autumn, but with the strong competition, we’ll see how well she can do here.”

Saint Antoine

Yuichi Shikato, trainer
“In the Fillies’ Revue, she didn’t rush over the first half and was able to race well to the finish. The outside gate was a factor but she did well. In the Fairy Stakes, she had nothing left when asked for more, but if she’s not hurried, she should be OK over the same 1,600 meters and for that reason, the wide, outer course will be good. She went to the farm for a short time and is looking good. She was back on March 31 and the next day we shipped her to Ritto. She worked up the hill course twice and then on April 8 she worked on the flat under the jockey (Kiwamu Ogino). It’s the same schedule as last time. Two starts ago, she broke really well so she raced from a forward position. That, however, may have worked against her. She was exhausted by the end. In her most recent race she was able to maintain her rhythm. If she can do that, she should be able to concentrate to the end, even at this distance.”

Shonan Charis

Shizuya Kato, trainer
“In the Fillies’ Revue she wasn’t able to find a good path both under way and in the straight. Overall, things didn’t go smoothly for her and it was quite unfortunate for her. I kept her at the training center after that and we’ve been making a lot of use of the smaller exercise rings then adding the hill course as well. It’s the Oka Sho and the bar is high. We’ll be asking a lot of the horse for her to be in top condition and the competition is going to be high. I’m hoping she’ll be able to bring out the talent she has.”

Star Anise

Tomokazu Takano, trainer
“In her last race, the Hanshin Juvenile Fillies, the jockey (Kohei Matsuyama) had faith in her and took her wide and traveled there. She handled it well and it was a strong race. Afterward, it was evident it had taken a lot out of her since she had given it everything she had. In addition to setting our sights on the Oka Sho, we decided to send her in without a prep in the hopes that she would be fresher that way. And the reason for that is that she has gotten plenty of work at the farm. She came back to the training center on March 20 and has put on muscle. In her fast work on April 1, the jockey rode and her movement was very powerful. She looked good overall and all aspects of her preparation have gone well.

Sweet Happiness

Hitoshi Nakai, assistant trainer “
“After some time off at the farm for some rest, she returned to the training center and all has gone smoothly. For better or worse, there has been no change. Two weeks ago, she worked with a training partner up the hill course and I think that should sharpen her up. Presently, her strong will is evident and I have the impression that that special characteristic of fillies, that strong sense of self, is coming out. And if that translates to a determination to win in a race, it’ll be great. She always performs well in a race. Last out in the Elfin Stakes, however, she got left behind a bit in the early stage. Before that, in the Hanshin Juvenile Fillies, the pace was too fast. I think having to play catch-up was tough on her, and we’ll take that into consideration this time. She does take the bit well in morning work. A brisk early pace that sees the frontrunners fade would be ideal.”

Zippy Tune

Toru Hayashi, trainer
“Her strongpoint is her ability to run at a good speed at length and she did a great job in the Queen Cup (finished second). She was difficult loading at the gate so we gave her gate practice right after that race and she has greatly improved. She went to the farm and came back looking good. On April 1, we had her work with another horse on the woodchip course, with her starting behind that horse and catching up and passing him. I think her footwork was good. One concern at present we’re dealing with is that she’s not utilizing her feed well, but she is calmer now so that’s going in a good direction. I think the Hanshin outer course will be easy for her to execute and I’m hoping she can weather her first long trip to the track from her home base.”