Tokyo Yūshun


The Tokyo Yūshun, also called as the Japanese Derby is a Grade 1 flat horse race in Japan for three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies run over a distance of 2,400 metres at the Tokyo Racecourse, Fuchū, Tokyo in late May or early June.
It was first run in 1932 and is the Japanese equivalent of the English Epsom Derby. It is the second leg of the Japanese Triple Crown, preceded by the Satsuki Shō in mid-late April and followed by the Kikuka Shō in mid-late October.
Since 2010, the Tokyo Yūshun is open to international competition due to Japan's inclusion in the International Federation of Horseracing Authorities' ICS Part I category, in which all graded black-type races in the JRA calendar are open to international competition. Races prior to 2001 were only limited to Japanese-bred horses. Since 2001, foreign-bred horses are allowed, but until 2010 this race were only limited to Japanese-trained horses. The current rule allows fielding at most seven entries either not bred/trained in Japan.

Step races

If horses from the National Association of Racing win any 3-year old JRA Grade 2 or 3 races before the Derby, they will be eligible to enter the Japanese Derby if ranked high enough in prize money. Priority entry rights cannot be applied to them; should they finish in such position in such races, extra entry right will be given out to Kyoto Shimbun Hai.
The Satsuki Shō, the Aoba Shō and the Principal Stakes are the official trial races for the Japanese Derby. The top five finishers in the Satsuki Shō, the top two finishers in the Aoba Shō and the winner of the Principal Stakes are guaranteed a place in the field for the Derby, regardless of prize money. Overall, there are seven automatic qualifying spots in the Derby; the other 10 entries are "at-large" horses determined by prize money earned prior to racing in the Derby. The Kyoto Shimbun Hai is officially considered a step race even though it does not normally give entry rights. The NHK Mile Cup, the only non-Triple Crown three-year-old GI horse race, is not an official step race, but has gained importance in recent years as horses such as Tanino Gimlet, King Kamehameha and Deep Sky participated in that race and would eventually win the Derby.

Winners since 1990

Earlier winners