Rice Shower (Japanese: ライスシャワー, Hepburn: Raisu Shawā; March 5, 1989 − June 4, 1995) was a Japanese Thoroughbred racehorse and stallion who won multiple graded stake races including the 1992 Kikuka-shō and the 1993 and 1995 Tennō Shō (Spring).
Rice Shower is known for preventing Mihono Bourbon from completing the Triple Crown in the Kikuka-shō and preventing Mejiro McQueen from achieving a third consecutive victory in the Tenno Sho (Spring), while finishing both in record time, earning him the nicknames “The Assassin from Kanto,” “The Black Assassin,” and “The Record Breaker.”
Although he subsequently entered a slump, Rice Shower made a comeback by winning the Tenno Sho (Spring) a second time in 1995. However, he suffered a fracture during that year’s Takarazuka Kinen, was diagnosed with a poor prognosis, and was euthanized. That same year, he posthumously received the JRA Special Award.
Background Rice Shower was foaled on March 5, 1989, at Utopia Bokujo in Noboribetsu, Hokkaido, which was owned by Hideo Kuribayashi, chairman of Kuribayashi Transport. His sire Real Shadai was the winner of the 1982 Grand Prix de Deauville while his dam Lilac Point was a daughter of Maruzensky, who was undefeated in eight starts.
Although small in stature, he was healthy, and visitors from neighboring ranches highly praised the balance of his physique, even making offers to purchase him. At the end of October 1990, he was moved to Daito Ranch, a branch facility in Chiba Prefecture, for training and development. Although his appearance gave the impression of a “stiff-bodied horse,” those in charge reported that when ridden, he was so supple that it felt “like riding on a cloud.” Furthermore, he was a horse that required virtually no effort to break in, and his training progress consistently outpaced that of other horses.
After completing his training, he was stabled with Yoshitsugu Iizuka at the Miho Training Center in Ibaraki Prefecture on March 23, 1991. On April 4, he was officially registered under the name “Rice Shower.” This name was chosen in reference to the tradition of throwing rice during a wedding and it was supposed to evoke happiness that would come to everyone who came into contact with him. Alternatively, the name was chosen to express celebratory sentiments, as it coincided with the wedding of Prince Fumihito and Princess Kiko.『ライスシャワー 55分55秒5』(ビデオ) ["Rice Shower 55 Minutes, 55 Seconds, 5" (video)], 学習研究社 Fumio Kawashima, who became his assigned stablehand, said that the horse’s small size stood out, and his anxiety outweighed his expectations.
Racing career 1991: two-year-old season
Rice Shower was supposed to make his debut at Sapporo Racecourse in July, when his two-year-old racing season began. However, he developed a fever in early July, forcing the cancellation of his first race in Sapporo,柴田 ["Shibata"] (1998) pp. 59-60 and his debut was postponed by one month to Niigata Racecourse on August 10. On race day, he was ridden by Takahiro Mizuno, a young jockey from the Iizuka stable, and was the second favorite. Racing from the front, he edged out Daiichi Riyumon by a neck in the final straight to claim his maiden victory.
In his second race, the Niigata Sansai Stakes, Yasuo Sugawara stepped in as a last-minute replacement after Mizuno received a one-day suspension the day before. Although the horse was the third favorite on race day, he got off to a slow start and was forced to race from the back of the pack; trapped on the inside of the field, he finished in 11th place. In his third race, the Fuyō Stakes, Mizuno returned to the saddle. Rice Shower took the lead at the entrance to the final straight and prevailed in a duel with the favorite, Ararat San, to claim his second victory.柴田 ["Shibata"] (1998) pp. 74 However, after this race, a fracture in his right front leg was discovered. He was diagnosed with a three-month recovery period and was placed under rehabilitation at the training center.柴田 ["Shibata"] (1998) pp. 76
1992: three-year-old season
On March 29, 1992, Rice Shower, started his three-year-old season in the Spring Stakes, a trial race for the Satsuki Sho. It was decided that the task was too much for the young jockey Mizuno, so veteran jockey Masato Shibata was chosen to ride him. Hitoshi Matoba had also been approached, but he declined, citing prior commitments. In this race, Rice Shower faced Mihono Bourbon for the first time, finishing fourth behind him, who had won by a margin of seven lengths.
Hitoshi Matoba took over as jockey for the next race, the Satsuki Sho, which marked his debut in the Classics. In that race, Rice Shower lost speed just before the final turn and finished 8th, well behind the winner Mihono Bourbon; he also finished 8th in the NHK Hai, a trial race for the Tokyo Yushun. In the Tokyo Yushun on May 31, he was rated as the 16th favorite in a field of 18. However, having sensed that Rice Shower was in better form during the final workout, Matoba decided to ride him in second place behind the pacesetting Mihono Bourbon. In the final stretch, he was unable to close the gap on Mihono Bourbon and was briefly overtaken by Mayano Petrus, who was closing in from behind. However, Rice Shower managed to overtake Mayano Petrus who faltered at the end and crossed the finish line in second place. He became the key player in an upset, with the exact payout for Mihono Bourbon and Mayano Petrus totaling 20,958 yen.
Rice Shower spent the summer at Daito Farm to rest and returned to the stable in late July.柴田 ["Shibata"] (1998) pp.93-97 He made his comeback on September 24 in the St. Lite Kinen. On that day, Matoba was at Hakodate Racecourse to ride Inter My Way in the Hakodate Sprint Stakes. As a result, Katsuharu Tanaka took his place in the saddle for the race. In the race, Legacy World took the lead, and Rice Shower moved to challenge him from the third turn, but finished second by a head. Iizuka expressed his displeasure that Matoba had gone to Hakodate without riding Rice Shower, and after the race, there was talk of a jockey change. However, the situation was resolved when Matoba, upon learning of this, apologized to Iizuka, and Matoba remained Rice Shower’s regular jockey.的場 ["The Field"] (2001) p.121
In the Kyoto Shimbun Hai, Matoba returned as Rice Shower's jockey and was backed as the second favorite behind Mihono Bourbon in their fourth matchup. The result was a second-place finish, one and a half lengths behind Mihono Bourbon, marking his fourth consecutive loss; however, since the Kikuka-sho was set to be run over a 3,000-meter distance, a long-distance race that suited Rice Shower but not Mihono Bourbon, both Matoba and Iizuka reportedly grew more confident that they could turn the tables in the main event. After the race, Matoba told Ikuko Kuribayashi, the wife of owner Hideo Kuribayashi, “If only the front-runner Kyoei Bowgun had run, Rice Shower would have had a chance to beat Mihono Bourbon.”『Sports Graphic Number』378号、p.75 Since Matoba rarely exchanged casual words with horse owners and never initiated friendly conversation on his own, Ikuko was reportedly surprised by his words and attitude when she heard this.『Sports Graphic Number』378号、pp.75-76
Preventing Mihono Bourbon from Winning the Triple Crown
On November 8, the day of the Kikuka-sho, Mihono Bourbon, who was set to become the fifth horse in history, and the second undefeated horse ever, to achieve the Triple Crown was the favorite at 1.5-to-1 odds, while Rice Shower was a distant second favorite at 7.3-to-1. During the race, Kyoei Bowgun took the lead ahead of the front-runner Mihono Bourbon, while Rice Shower settled into fifth place. On the final turn of the second lap, Mihono Bourbon passed Kyoei Bowgun, who had begun to fade, to take the lead, but midway down the home stretch, Rice Shower overtook him and won by a margin of one and a quarter length, achieving his first graded stakes victory in a Classic race.
Rice Shower's winning time of 3 minutes 5.0 seconds was the Japanese record for a 3,000-meter turf race at the time. This victory also prevented Mihono Bourbon from completing the Triple Crown. In a post-race interview, Matoba stated, “Both the horse and I were determined to do whatever it took to beat Mihono Bourbon, and I’m truly happy that our efforts paid off.”『優駿』 ["Yushun"], January 1993 issue, p. 141 However, given the high expectations for Mihono Bourbon to complete the Triple Crown, the atmosphere in the stadium after the race was described as “no applause, more like booing” and “an unprecedented, somewhat strange atmosphere,” according to both Ikuko Kuribayashi and Sadahiro Kojima respectively.松永 ["Matsunaga"] (2000) pp.109-110 After the Kikuka Sho, Rice Shower competed in the Arima Kinen, where he was the second favorite behind Tokai Teio, who had won the previous race, the Japan Cup. However, Matoba failed to notice that Tokai Teio, who was positioned at the back of the pack, was struggling, causing him to delay his final surge, and he finished in 8th place.
1993: four-year-old season
In 1993, Rice Shower began his campaign with the Meguro Kinen. Although his weight was 59 kg, the heaviest of his career, Matoba believed that to win the Tenno Sho (Spring), Rice Shower needed the “class” to compete on his own merits. He therefore targeted Matikanetannhauser, the third-place finisher in the 1992 Kikuka-sho, and attempted a race strategy where Mejiro McQueen would keep pace with his opponent under his own power and overtake him at the end. Although he finished second, two and a half lengths behind, the team was satisfied with the performance, given that the horse was still in the midst of his preparation. In the subsequent Nikkei Sho, he was backed as the favorite for the first time and delivered a victory to live up to that support.
Preventing Mejiro McQueen from Winning a Third Consecutive Tenno Sho (Spring) His next race was the Tenno Sho (Spring), which had long been his target. With Mejiro McQueen winning the race two years in a row consecutively in mind, he underwent rigorous training designed to push him to his limits. However, the training was so grueling that it drew criticism—some worrying if the horse was being overworked—and was even mocked as being so harsh that “the horse will break down before it can beat Mejiro McQueen.”柴田 ["Shibata"] (1998) p.142 Nevertheless, this training paid off, and on the day of the Tenno Sho, he lined up with a body weight of 430 kg—12 kg lighter than his previous race and his lightest since the Tokyo Yushun.
On race day, Rice Shower was the second favorite behind Mejiro McQueen. In the race, Mejiro Palmer took the lead, with Mejiro McQueen positioned in a group watching him, and Rice Shower right behind them. By the final turn of the second lap, these three horses had pulled completely clear, but halfway down the home stretch, Rice Shower caught up to Mejiro McQueen and went on to win by two and a half lengths. This victory prevented Mejiro McQueen from achieving a third consecutive Tenno Sho (Spring) title and jockey Yutaka Take from securing his fifth consecutive victory in the race. The winning time of 3 minutes 17.1 seconds was another record, following the one set in the Kikuka-sho. Immediately after the finish, commentator Kiyoshi Sugimoto announced, “Rice Shower, the assassin from the Kanto region, has defeated Mejiro MacQueen, the overwhelming favorite in the Tenno Sho.”柴田 ["Shibata"] (1998) p.155 Following this race, Rice Shower earned the nicknames “The Assassin from Kanto,” “Black Assassin” and “Record Breaker.”