was a Japanese Thoroughbred racehorse, who was an undefeated winner of his 10 race starts, which included the Tokyo Yushun (Japanese Derby).
Breeding He was sired by Theft (GB), a son of Tetratema (IRE), out of Daini Tyrant's Queen, a daughter of Soldennis. He was a brother to Daring and a half-brother to Izutada, by Tokino Chikara. Theft was the sire of Bostonian who also won the Tokyo Yushun (Derby).Australian Stud Book: Theft (IRE) Retrieved 2010-12-10 Tokino Minoru was inbred in the third and fourth generations (3m x 4f) to The Tetrarch.
Racing career Major racing wins 1950 Asahi Hai Sansai Stakes, Nakayama Turf 1100m 1951 Satsuki Sho (Japanese 2000 Guineas), Nakayama Turf 2000m 1951 Tokyo Yushun (Japanese Derby), Tokyo Turf 2400m
He died in 1951 from tetanus-related sepsis,Ahnert, Rainer L. (editor in chief), “Thoroughbred Breeding of the World”, Pozdun Publishing, Germany, 1970 just 17 days after winning the Derby.
Racing record The following racing form is based on information available on JBIS search and netkeiba.com. DateRacecourseRaceGradeDistanceGateOddsFav.Fin.TimeMarginJockeyWinner (Runner-Up)1950 – three-year-old season1950/07/23HakodateNewcomer RaceMaidenTurf 800m1248.1Mitsumasa Iwashita(Matterhorn)1950/08/23SapporoThree-Year-Old OpenOPDirt 1000m511:02.0Mitsumasa Iwashita(Fumiwaka)1950/09/03SapporoSapporo StakesOPDirt 1200m21:13.1Mitsumasa Iwashita(Track O)1950/10/01NakayamaThree-Year-Old OpenOPTurf 1000m211:01.2Mitsumasa Iwashita(Shadai Blues)1950/10/15NakayamaThree-Year-Olds Winners RaceTurf 1100m311:05.4Mitsumasa Iwashita(Happy Unebi)1950/12/10NakayamaAsahi Hai Sansai StakesOPTurf 1100m11:06.3Mitsumasa Iwashita(Issei)1951 – four-year-old season1951/04/01NakayamaFour-Year-Olds Selection HandicapTurf 1800m411:52.1Mitsumasa Iwashita(Issei)1951/04/28TokyoFour-Year-Old OpenOPTurf 1800m311:52.4Mitsumasa Iwashita(Issei)1951/05/13NakayamaSatsuki ShoOPTurf 2000m812:03.0Mitsumasa Iwashita(Issei)1951/06/03TokyoTokyo YushunOPTurf 2400m912:31.1Mitsumasa Iwashita(Issei)
Honours The Kyodo Tsushin Hai, a three-year-old stakes race held at the Tokyo Racecourse, was given the subtitle "Tokino Minoru Kinen (Memorial)" in his honour in 1969. Tokino Minoru was inducted into the Japan Racing Association Hall of Fame in 1984.
In popular culture
The owner of Tokino Minoru, Masaichi Nagata, who was the President of Daiei Film, commissioned a movie based on his life, titled The Phantom Horse, which was released in 1955.
Tazuna Hayakawa, Tracen Academy's secretary from the multimedia franchise Umamusume: Pretty Derby is speculated to be based on Tokino Minoru. While seemingly appearing and listed as human, she has numerous traits that mirror his career, such as sharing his birthday on May 2nd, being fast enough to catch Taiki Shuttle (whose real-world career was also composed of sprint and mile races similar to Tokino Minoru's), and her green and black clothing matching the colors that Mitsumasa Iwashita wore as his jockey. She also shows great concern over making sure that trainees get proper medical attention, likely mirroring Tokino Minoru's death and Nagata's aggressive push for standardized medical practices for racehorses, including vaccinations, and the establishment of the Japan Racing Association.
Legacy and memorials At the time of Tokino Minoru's debut, national horse racing was struggling financially, overshadowed by the boom in local horse racing. Because of this, it was uncertain if it was possible to continue running the Japanese Derby. Tokino Minoru, who attracted widespread public attention, was seen as a 'saviour' for national horse racing. Among the more over 70,000 spectators who came on Derby day, Kuniharu Hashimoto said that 'many fans just wanted to see Tokino Minoru race, even if only for a moment'. The writer Takashi Iwakawa described it as 'not merely gambling. Even those who had previously been indifferent to horse racing began to visit the racetrack to witness the earnest and selfless sprint of this one horse, a gift from Heaven.' Iwakawa referred to Tokino Minoru as 'the founder of the Derby's revival' and 'the protagonist of the first horse racing boom.'
Keijiro Okawa, a horse racing commentator, regarding the Derby, recalled "When Tokino Minoru surged at the third corner, the crowd erupted. I thought, everyone is cheering for Tokino Minoru," and after the finish, he reflected, "Ah, finally horse racing has become something for everyone." He also reminisced about the memorable commemorative photo surrounded by fans, stating, "I felt that postwar horse racing had become racing for the fans." Okawa further remarked, "In Japanese horse racing history, whenever the fan base expanded and attention grew, there would always appear a significant star horse at the key moments." He identified Tokino Minoru as the first example of this, with future examples being Shinzan, Takeshiba O, Haiseiko, and Oguri Cap. Hidetaka Takamizu commented, "He was one of the pivotal figures in the era when horse racing solidified its position as a gambling sport."
Pedigree
Tokino Minoru is inbred 3S x 4D to the stallion The Tetrarch, meaning that he appears third generation on the sire side of his pedigree and fourth generation on the dam side of his pedigree.
See also List of leading Thoroughbred racehorses
References
External links