is a retired Japanese racehorse and broodmare.

She was voted the Best Older Filly or Mare of 2022 following her major wins at the Queen Elizabeth II Cup and Sankei Sho All Comers that year.

Background Geraldina's dam, Gentildonna, was the winner of the Triple Tiara in 2012 who went on to win a total of 7 Grade I races. Geraldina's sire, Maurice, also won 6 Grade I races including the Yasuda Kinen, Mile Championship, and the Hong Kong Mile.

Geraldina was owned by , a company that offers stakes in horse ownership (Hitokuchi Banushi; ), that offered a share for 1.75 million yen each for a total of 70 million yen.

Racing career

2020: Two-year-old season Geraldina started her racing career at a debut race held at Chukyo Racecourse in September, where she finished at third place. She finished second on her second race, and won her first race in her third race.

She would later run her first graded race, the Hanshin Juvenile Fillies, that December, but finished seventh behind Sodashi.

2021: Three-year-old season Geraldina started the season by contesting the , where she finished 10th. Following this race, her original trainer, , retired on February 28 due to age restrictions, and the horse was transferred to 's stable.

After switching trainers, Geraldina ran her first race with older horses at the Shirosaki Tokubetsu, held on June 27 at the Hanshin Racecourse. In that race, her right buckle came loose and finished at eighth place as a result. Saito was fined 200,000JPY following this incident.

Geraldina saw better success after this race, however. As she went on to win 3 races in a row. She did not run the Shuka Sho, but rather opted to enter the Challenge Cup held in December, where she finished fourth behind .

2022: Four-year-old season Geraldina continued to compete in races but was unable to secure a win, finishing 3rd behind in the Kokura Kinen despite being the most favored to win. However, in her next race, the Sankei Sho All Comers, she was able to run at a steady pace among the pack, placing herself in the inner side of the track, and overtook the rest of the pack, including favored Triple Tiara winner Daring Tact, and won her first graded race. This race also marked the first graded race victory for a Gentildonna foal.

Following this victory, she entered the Queen Elizabeth II Cup with Cristian Demuro as her new jockey. She ran among the rear of the pack for most of the race, but quickly overtook the lead from the outside on the final stretch, securing her first Grade I victory.

Geraldina was then entered in to the Arima Kinen to finish off the season. However, she started late and trailed the pack third from last. Despite this she pushed hard to regain the lead, and tried to overtake the lead on the final stretch, only to finish third behind Equinox and .

2023: Five-year-old season Geraldina started the season with the Osaka Hai. She trailed Stars on Earth for most of the race, playing herself in the rear of the pack, and tried to take the lead on the final stretch, but finished sixth behind Jack d'Or. Following this race, she was entered in to her first race abroad, the Queen Elizabeth II Cup at Sha Tin Racecourse, only to finish sixth there as well. After returning to Japan, she contested the 64th Takarazuka Kinen, but finished fourth behind Equinox.

After a Summer break, she was entered in to the All Comers to contest the race a second year in a row, but finished sixth. She was later also entered in to the Queen Elizabeth II Cup but couldn't win that race for a second year in a row either, finishing at 5th. On her last race, she returned to Hong Kong to run the Hong Kong Vase, but finished fourth behind Junko. Following this race, she was retired from racing to become a broodmare at Northern Farm.

Racing statistics The following racing form is based on information available in JBIS Search, netkeiba.com, and the Hong Kong Jockey Club. DateTrackRaceGradeDistance (condition)EntryHNOdds (Favored)FinishTimeMarginsJockeyWinner (Runner-up)2020 – two-year-old seasonSep 12ChukyoDebut Race1600 m (Good)1614.4 (3)1:35.80.3Yasunari IwataSatono LuceOct 3ChukyoMaiden Race1600 m (Firm)1083.7 (2)1:34.50.2Yasunari IwataSparkleNov 23HanshinMaiden Race1800 m (Firm)1693.4 (2)1:46.7 -0.0Yuichi Kitamura(Toshin Mont Blanc)Dec 13HanshinHanshin Juvenile Fillies11600 m (Firm)18330.7 (8)7th1:33.60.5Yasunari IwataSodashi2021 – three-year-old seasonFeb 6ChukyoElfin StakesL1600 m (Firm)1245.7 (2)10th1:36.60.6Yuichi KitamuraSulphur CosmosJun 27HanshinShirosaki Tokubetsu1-win1800 m (Firm)985.0 (4)8th1:49.43.5Yuichi FukunagaGeofrontJul 10KokuraMacau JCT1-win1800 m (Firm)1344.1 (2)1:45.3 -0.4Yuichi Fukunaga(Toshin Mont Blanc)Sept 5KokuraChikugogawa Tokubetsu2-win1800 m (Firm)11111.7 (1)1:47.8 -0.3Yuichi Fukunaga(Jun Blue Sky)Oct 17HanshinNishinomiya Stakes3-win1800 m (Firm)1592.4 (1)1:46.1 -0.3Yuichi Fukunaga(Izu Jo no Kiseki)Dec 4HanshinChallenge Cup32000 m (Firm)1113.9 (2)4th2:01.80.8Yuichi FukunagaSo Valiant2022 – four-year-old seasonFeb 13HanshinKyoto Kinen22200 m (Good)1397.5 (4)4th2:12.20.3Yuichi FukunagaAfrican GoldApr 9HanshinHanshin Himba Stakes21600 m (Firm)1194.0 (3)6th1:33.20.4Hideaki MiyukiMeisho MimozaJun 4ChukyoNaruo Kinen32000 m (Firm)1095.4 (4)1:57.80.1Yuichi FukunagaWeltreisendeAug 14KokuraKokura Kinen32200 m (Firm)1543.2 (1)1:58.20.8Yuichi FukunagaMaria ElenaSept 25NakayamaAll Comers22200 m (Firm)13219.5 (5)2:12.7 -0.2Takeshi Yokoyama(Robertson Quay)Nov 13HanshinQueen Elizabeth II Cup12200 m (Soft)18188.1 (4)2:13.0 -0.3Cristian Demuro(Win Marilyn) (Lilac)Dec 25NakayamaArima Kinen12500 m (Firm)1657.4 (3)2:33.10.7Cristian DemuroEquinox2023 – five-year-old seasonApr 2HanshinOsaka Hai12000 m (Firm)1618.5 (5)6th1:58.00.6Mirai IwataJack d'OrApr 30Sha TinQueen Elizabeth II Cup12000 m (Good)778.2 (4)6th2:02.740.82Cristian DemuroRomantic WarriorJun 24HanshinTakarazuka Kinen12200 m (Firm)171113.8 (3)4th2:11.40.2Yutaka TakeEquinoxSept 24NakayamaAll Comers22200 m (Firm)1565.1 (3)6th2:12.50.5Taisei DannoRousham ParkNov 12KyotoQueen Elizabeth II Cup12200 m (Firm)1574.6 (2)5th2:12.90.3Ryan MooreBrede WegDec 10Sha TinHong Kong Vase12400 m (Good)9717.0 (5)4th2:30.730.61William BuickJunko

The Hong Kong odds are based on those by the Hong Kong Jockey Club

Pedigree

Geraldina is inbred 4×3 to Sunday Silence, meaning that this horse appears both the fourth and third generations of this pedigree.

References