Japanese one-two on good day for foreign jocks at Busan
On the day Hitomi Miyashita became the first foreign female jockey to take up a full time license in Korea, it was her Japanese compatriot, Eiki Nishimura who denied her the honour of landing the day’s feature race at Busan Race Park.

Riding favourite Yongdu Baram, Miyashita was unable to catch Nishimura who guided second favourite Glory Champ to a two and a half length win. As well as a Japanese one-two, both horses are trained by Kim Young Gwan, the trainer who has supported overseas jockeys more than any other.

Miyashita had earlier made her debut in race 6 with a strong ride on mildy fancied Chowolgeum, taking the three year old to second place. Two other rides didn’t trouble the placings but overall it was a successful first day on the job for Hitomi.

With the track’s leading overseas rider Martin Wepner up in Seoul for Sunday’s Minister’s Cup, Nishimura took another win earlier in the day with a win on Theres No Reason in race 5. Rounding out a great day for the foreign riders at the track, Stephan Swanepoel took an unlikely win on 100/1 outsider Stormy Run in race 1. Swanepoel went on to add two third place finishes to his haul.

The action moves to Seoul and Jeju Race Parks on Saturday before all three tracks host cards on Sunday.

FULL RESULTS FROM BUSAN