is a Japanese racehorse and stallion. His major victories include back-to-back wins in the Japan Cup Dirt in 2010 and 2011, as well as the 2011 February Stakes and the Mile Championship Nambu Hai. His name means "to transcend."
Racing career
2009: three-year-old season Transcend's debut race was a 1,800-meter turf race at Kyoto Racecourse. Having drawn attention even before his debut by posting times in training that rivaled those of older horses, he was the favorite but finished second. He was entered in his second race, also on turf, but was scratched due to phlegmon. Transcend claimed his first victory in his third start, a dirt maiden race at Hanshin Racecourse. In a 5-million-yen class race run on a heavy track, he led from the front throughout the race and posted the fastest final three furlongs at 37.9 seconds to win by seven lengths. At this point, his team began considering an entry in the Tokyo Yushun, so Transcend returned to the turf to compete in the Kyoto Shimbun Hai. Although he had finished second in a maiden race on turf, all of his wins to that point had come on dirt, and he was the fifth favorite. In the race, Transcend took the lead as usual but couldn’t keep up in the home stretch, finishing ninth, well behind the winner, Best Member. In the 10-million-yen class Kirinzan Tokubetsu, he faced older horses for the first time but won by a margin of 8 lengths in record time.
In the newly established Leopard Stakes, Hiroyuki Uchida was suspended from riding in the UK, so Masami Matsuoka took over as the jockey. Although horses with proven dirt records, such as Suni and Silk Mobius, were entered, Transcend was backed as the favorite. In the race, he tracked in second place before breaking away in the home stretch to win by three lengths over Suni. Although the track was in good condition making it difficult to post fast times, his winning time matched that of his previous race. He was also the favorite in the Elm Stakes, held on the same course, but failed to finish strongly and finished fourth. In the subsequent Musashino Stakes, Transcend stayed back at the rear for the first time and gradually gained ground in the home stretch but still finished sixth. Trainer Yasuda commented, “He was concerned about the transition from turf to dirt.” After the race, he did not compete in the Japan Cup Dirt and went into a rest period.
2010: four-year-old season In Transcend's comeback race, the Aldebaran Stakes, Katsumi Ando rode him for the first time since the Kyoto Shimbun Hai. Backed as the second favorite behind Fusaichi Seven, he caught Fusaichi Seven in the home stretch to claim victory. Partly due to the fast pace of the race, the race was decided in a record time that beat the 1:56.6 set by Ryu Boy in 1983 by 1.2 seconds. Subsequently, he started as the favorite in the Antares Stakes. He raced in the leading pack but lacked a finishing kick in the home stretch and finished in 8th place. In the following Tokai Stakes, he again started as the favorite. He took the lead and set the pace for the field but was overtaken just before the finish line by Silk Mobius, who had closed in from the middle of the pack, and finished in 2nd place.
Transcend kicked off the fall season with the Nippon TV Hai. Although he was overtaken by Furioso in the home stretch, he held on to finish second. In the first Miyako Stakes, he took the lead from the start and without losing any momentum, went on to win, securing his second graded stakes victory. In the Japan Cup Dirt, with Espoir City and Smart Falcon having withdrawn, Transcend was backed as the favorite. He took the lead at the start and, though challenged by Birdie Birdie coming out of the fourth turn, pulled away and held off a late charge by Glorious Noah by a neck to claim his first GI victory.
2011: five-year-old season Transcend's first race of the year was the February Stakes. As in his previous race, with Espoir City and Smart Falcon absent, he was once again the favorite. He took the lead from the start and pulled away from the field in the home stretch, fending off a late charge from Furioso and others to hold on for his second GI victory. Following this victory, his entry in the Godolphin Mile was withdrawn, and he was entered in the Dubai World Cup alongside Buena Vista and Victoire Pisa. In the Dubai World Cup, Transcend took the lead from the start but was narrowly defeated in a neck-and-neck battle with fellow Japanese horse Victoire Pisa in the final straight, finishing in second place.
Transcend's fall schedule was originally set to begin with the Nippon TV Hai, but he was withdrawn from that race. In the Mile Championship Nambu Hai which was held at Tokyo Racecourse due to the Tōhoku earthquake, he extended his lead from second place during the race and prevailed in a head-to-head battle with Danon Come On in the home stretch to claim his third Grade 1 victory. His finishing time of 1 minute 34.8 seconds was a fast performance, just 0.2 seconds off the then-standing record for the 1,600-meter dirt course at Tokyo Racecourse. In the JBC Classic, he ran in second place and closed the gap on the front-running Smart Falcon in the home stretch, but narrowly lost, finishing second. In the Japan Cup Dirt, he seized the lead from the outermost gate and, showing no signs of tiring in the home stretch, held on to win, becoming the first horse in Japan Cup Dirt history to win back-to-back titles.
2012: six-year-old season Transcend started as the favorite in the February Stakes. Although he was unable to build up speed on the turf section immediately after the start, he improved his position on the backstretch and moved up to fourth place by the third turn, but he lost momentum in the home stretch and finished in seventh. He competed in the Dubai World Cup again, following his 2011 appearance. In the Dubai World Cup, Transcend took the lead from the start and led the race, but lost momentum at the third turn and finished 13th, bringing up the rear. In the JBC Classic, following a layoff of about seven months, he was the favorite but finished third, 1.6 seconds behind the winner, Wonder Acute. In the Japan Cup Dirt, Transcend attempted to take the lead but was unable to do so; he ran in third place for most of the race but lost momentum at the third turn and, unable to recover, finished in 16th place, bringing up the rear. He also finished seventh in the Tokyo Daishoten, ending the year without a single victory.
Racing form The following racing form is based on information available on JBIS search, netkeiba.com, and Racing Post. DateRacecourseRaceGradeDistanceGateOddsFav.Fin.TimeMarginJockeyWinner (Runner-Up)2009 – three-year-old season2009/02/14KyotoThree-Year-Old NewcomerMaidenT 1800m113.911:51.10.1Y.KawadaAdmire Again2009/03/01HanshinThree-Year-Old MaidenMaidenT 1600m1NRK.AndoTriumph March2009/04/11HanshinThree-Year-Old MaidenMaidenD 1800m12.921:53.7 -0.3K.Ando(Red Surpass)2009/04/25KyotoThree-Year-Old Pre-OPPre-OPD 1800m21.911:49.7 -1.2K.Ando(Smart Pulse)2009/05/09KyotoKyoto Shimbun HaiG2T 2200m1210.959th2:14.41.4K.AndoBest Member2009/07/26NiigataKirinzan TokubetsuPre-OPD 1800m112.01 -1.3H.Uchida(Christophoros)2009/08/23NiigataLeopard StakesListedD 1800m101.711:49.5 -0.5M.Matsuoka(Suni)2009/09/21NiigataElm StakesG3D 1800m151.614th1:51.40.3H.UchidaMachikanenihombare2009/11/07TokyoMusashino StakesG3D 1600m154.136th1:35.90.4M.MatsuokaWonder Acute2010 – four-year-old season2010/02/13KyotoAldebaran StakesOPD 1900m83.52 -0.2K.Ando(Fusaichi Seven)2010/04/25KyotoAntares StakesG3D 1800m121.618th1:50.50.8K.AndoDaishin Orange2010/05/23KyotoTokai StakesG2D 1900m63.311:55.40.0S.FujitaSilk Mobius2010/09/23FunabashiNippon TV HaiJpn2D 1800m73.021:49.30.5S.FujitaFurioso2010/11/07KyotoMiyako StakesG3D 1800m23.121:49.8 -0.2S.Fujita(King's Emblem)2010/12/05HanshinJapan Cup DirtG1D 1800m33.511:48.90.0S.Fujita(Glorious Noah)2011 – five-year-old season2011/02/20TokyoFebruary StakesG1D 1600m123.511:36.4 -0.2S.Fujita(Furioso)2011/03/26MeydanDubai World CupG1AW 2000m940/1132:06.00.1S.FujitaVictoire Pisa2011/10/10TokyoMile Championship Nambu HaiJpn1D 1600m111.611:34.80.0S.Fujita(Danon Come On)2011/11/03OiJBC ClassicJpn1D 2000m92.422:02.30.2S.FujitaSmart Falcon2011/12/04HanshinJapan Cup DirtG1D 1800m162.011:50.6 -0.3S.Fujita(Wonder Acute)2012 – six-year-old season2012/02/19TokyoFebruary StakesG1D 1600m151.517th1:36.61.2S.FujitaTesta Matta2012/03/31MeydanDubai World CupG1AW 2000m1020/1913th2:07.54.8S.FujitaMonterosso2012/11/05KawasakiJBC ClassicJpn1D 2100m132.612:14.11.6S.FujitaWonder Acute2012/12/02HanshinJapan Cup DirtG1D 1800m79.0516th1:51.83.0S.FujitaNihonpiro Ours2012/12/29OiTokyo DaishotenG1D 2000m921.767th2:08.22.3S.FujitaRoman Legend Legend
D = Dirt T = Turf AW = All-Weather indicated that it was a record time finish
Retirement In light of the previous year, which ended without a single victory, his team decided to retire him from racing on January 3, 2013 and transition him to stud. After retiring from racing, he moved to Arrow Stud in Shinhidaka, Hokkaido, where he began his career as a stallion. On January 6, the Japan Racing Association announced that his registration as a racehorse would be canceled effective January 9. He retired from stud duties in 2025 and was transferred to Versailles Resort Farm.
In popular culture An anthropomorphized version of Transcend appears as a character in the Japanese multimedia franchise Umamusume: Pretty Derby, voiced by Yui Tsukada. She is depicted as an eccentric information-savvy girl with interests in modern subcultures, who is constantly driven by the desire for further knowledge to satiate her own curiosity. This also extends to her expertise with computers and modern technology, and as such her roommate and best friend Wonder Acute regularly seeks her help due to her inability to understand contemporary electronic devices.
Pedigree
References