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Lee Yong Ho Winning At Busan While Takahashi Debuts At Seoul

Several new apprentice jockeys have debuted over the past couple of weeks at both Seoul and Busan with a couple of them catching the eye so far. Meanwhile there are comings and goings among the foreign jockey ranks.

Winning already: Apprentice jockey Lee Yong Ho

Winning already: Apprentice jockey Lee Yong Ho

Among the apprentices, the stand-out so far has been 18-year-old Lee Yong Ho who has already ridden 5 winners from his first 29 mounts at Busan. Lee, the youngest jockey to gain a license in Korea for many years, is the younger brother of Seoul rider Lee Chan Ho, who made a similarly impressive start to his career two years ago. The younger Lee had already built quite a reputation for himself before his debut and he has received support from trainers right from his first day.

At Seoul, the best so far has been another Lee; Lee Hyeon Jong. After several near misses the 21-year-old rode his first winner last Saturday and quickly followed up with another. He has only had 13 rides so far but 7 of them have finished in the placings.

Among the other new apprentices, Park Jae I and Jin Kyum, both at Busan, have managed to get 2nd places while Kim Do Jung at Seoul has a 3rd to his name.

Debuting at Seoul last Saturday was Japanese jockey Yuri Takahashi. The 28-year-old, who is affiliated with the Iwate Racing Association, endured a challenging opening weekend with seven rides, none of which had a chance. Hopefully things will get better for him in future weeks in the way they’ve certainly got better for Djordje Perovic. The “Serbian Frankie” rode his 14th Korean winner on Saturday and if he continues riding the way he has been, he looks set to be the first non-Japanese visiting jockey to make a real impact at the notoriously difficult Seoul.

The other foreign rider at Seoul, Jarred Samuel, who has been a popular and positive presence for the past four months, has opted not to renew his contract and will return to South Africa at the end of July. Samuel will be replaced and another foreign rider is expected to arrive at the end of August.

Down at Busan meanwhile, Ikuyasu Kurakane is set for his third Korean stint, having been granted a license once more. Kurakane won the “MVP Award” at Seoul Racecourse last year – an achievemnet that led to the Japanese NAR presenting him with a special prize at their annual “Grand Prix” awards ceremony in February.

Elsewhere, former Busan jockey Joe Fujii is now riding in Hokkaido and landed his first Japanese winner at Mombetsu Racecourse last week.

Champions Suite Opens For Foreign Punters At Seoul Racecourse

Seoul Racecourse has opened the “Champions Suite” a dedicated lounge for foreign punters on the fifth floor of the Luckyville Grandstand.

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The room had a “soft” opening last weekend but will open formally this Saturday July 18. The lounge is open to anyone in Korea with a foreign passport or Alien Registration Card (one Korean guest per person is permitted). Racecards are available in English, Japanese and Chinese and there is both a staffed and automated betting window in the lounge which is situated immediately below the main VIP room midway down the home-straight and has an excellent view of the racecourse as well as TVs on each table.

Until the end of September, all seats in all zones will be priced at 15,000 won per person per day. Tea, coffee and soft drinks are free of charge while beer and wine is for sale. Lunch may also be ordered in from the Owners’ Restaurant and like the rest of the course there is free high speed wi-fi avaialable. The lounge has a capacity of 38.

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Reservations may be made in advance – and there are still seats available for this Saturday’s official opening which will be attended by the Chairman of the KRA (email hrikorea@gmail.com or champions_suite@kra.co.kr to make a reservation) – or on the day at the Champions Suite. Any of the information desks at the racecourse will help with directions.

A day at the races just got a lot more comfortable!

Gamdonguibada, Nobody Catch Me and Cheon Gu Set To Represent Korea In Singapore

Three Korean-trained horses have been nominated to run in the Korea Racing Authority Cup at Kranji Racecourse in Singapore on Sunday July 26.

Gamdonguibada

Gamdonguibada

In what is set to be a quite historic occasion, the race will mark not only the first time Korean horses have run in Singapore but also the first time that an overseas race will be beamed back live to racecourses in Korea.

The KRA Trophy will be run over 1200M on the Kranji Polytrack with a prize fund of S$250,000. Crucially, only Singapore horses with an MRA rating no higher than 90 are eligible and this could make for an interesting race.

Busan’s top trainer Kim Young Kwan will send two horses. The best known is his 2013 Grand Prix Stakes winner and 2014 Queens’ Tour champion mare Gamdonguibada. The other is the 2014 Busan Metropolitan City Mayor’s Cup winner Nobody Catch Me. From Seoul, trainer Seo In Seok sends his up and coming colt Cheon Gu.

Gamdonguibada (USA) [Werblin – Radyla (Country Pine)] 6yo mare (28/13/4/6/1/1) – She won the Grand Prix Stakes in 2013 and has gone on to become one of the most successful fillies or mares ever to race in Korea. In addition to the Grand Prix, she has won the the Gyeongnam Governor’s Cup twice, the KNN Cup and the Ttukseom Cup on the way to earning more than KRW 2 Billion in prize money. After completing a clean sweep of the Queens’ Tour races in 2014, she was expected to retire but returned as a 6-year-old and won her most recent race on May 17. She hasn’t run at such short a distance as 1200M since she was a 2-year-old in 2011. Lim Sung Sil is expected to ride her at Kranji.

Nobody Catch Me (USA) [With Distinction – Nana’s Babe (Allen’s Prospect)] 5yo gelding (20/6/4/2/0/0) – The wildcard. He was the winner of the Busan Mayor’s Cup last year at odds of over 50/1 and added one win after that but was a disappointment – and eventual disqualification – from the Grand Prix Stakes last year. He’s only run twice in 2015 and has struggled. However, he may well appreciate running at a sprint distance once more.

Nobody Catch Me won the 2014 Busan Metropolitan (Newsis)

Nobody Catch Me won the 2014 Busan Metropolitan (Newsis)

Cheon Gu (USA) [Old Fashioned – So Much Fun (Speightstown)] 3yo colt (6/4/1/1/0/0) – The only one of the three to be based at Seoul Racecourse and the only one who still looks yet to reach his full potential, Cheon Gu has won four of his six starts to date. He was beaten in his only Stakes race when second in the Herald Business Cup over 1400M in May but returned to the winner’s circle in a class 2 race at the same distance last week and is considered one of the brightest imported prospects at Seoul. Yoo Seung Wan is expected to ride him in Singapore.

Cheon Gu will carry 54.5kg, Nobody Catch Me 57.5kg and Gamdonguibada 56kg. While the Korean horses had to be nominated by Monday this week, Singapore based horses have until July 15 to enter the race.

The KRA Trophy will come under orders at 17:15 Singapore time and will be shown live at Seoul and Busan Racecourses during the normal raceday broadcast. No betting markets will be offered in Korea – the law needs to change before that can happen – nevertheless, having permission granted for it is a big step in the right direction. The Singapore Turf Club has been a great friend of Korean racing in recent years and it is fitting that Kranji hosts the first race to be beamed back.

The Singapore Turf Club has been a big supporter of the internationalization of Korean racing

The Singapore Turf Club has been a big supporter of the internationalization of Korean racing

The history of Korean-trained horses racing abroad is extremely brief. Watts Village pulled off a remarkable victory in the Interaction Cup in Japan in 2013 but the following year, the three Korean horses who went fared less well. Meanwhile, Singapore trained El Padrino came to Seoul last August and broke the track record for 1400M in the process of winning the Asia Challenge Cup.

While it remains to be seen what kind of line-up Singapore puts out, the horses nominated from Korea have every chance of acquitting themselves well. Whatever happens, it will be an important milestone in the internationalization of Korean racing.

Jarred Samuel Makes The Breakthrough At Last

It has been a long time coming but finally the hard work paid off for Jarred Samuel at Seoul Racecourse this afternoon as he rode his first Korean winner. It was his 102nd ride.

The 27-year-old South African has certainly been keeping busy since arriving in Seoul in April getting on plenty of horses. However, none of them have ever looked to be potential winners.

The same could have been said about Raon Rusa (Pico Central). The filly won three of her first four starts and was second in another but came into race 7 this afternoon a 15/1 chance following a disappointing performance last month.

Samuel would not be denied this time though. Always handy, he brought Raon Rusa through in the home straight to overtake tiring leader Super Plucky and held off the Djordje Perovic ridden Ssen Sky by a length on the line for a foreign jockey one-two.

Hopefully it’s the first of many for the ever-positive jockey.

Trainer Thomas Gillespie Licensed At Busan / Eight New Apprentice Jockeys Set To Debut

There is a new trainer from overseas at Busan Racecourse. Thomas Gillespie was granted a license effective from the beginning of June and is gradually building his stable up.

The stables at Busan. Home to new overseas trainer

The stables at Busan. Home to new overseas trainer

A native of Ireland, Gillespie has been training in his own right since 2010 in Malaysia after a spell as an assistant in Singapore. He arrives with a solid reputation. His father Declan, who was his assistant in Malaysia, will be familiar to Irish and British racing fans as he was a successful jockey.

Gillespie has received early support from owner Lee Won Tae, who has already sent three to his barn while Pegasus Stables have also supplied one.

Thomas Gillespie has been allocated stable number 8 and joins Peter Wolsley and Bart Rice, both also at Busan, as the only foreign trainers in Korean racing. The 33-year-old Gillespie will have the distinction of being the youngest trainer in Korea.

In other licensing news, several young jockeys have been newly apprenticed at both Seoul and Busan. There are five at Seoul and three at Busan and interestingly, the new jockeys for Busan are younger than than they are in the capital and closer in age to what one would expect of a newly apprenticed rider elsewhere in the world.

The quality of young apprentices coming through has been getting higher year on year so it will be interesting to see how they go.

Here is a list of the new riders along with ages and the trainer they have been apprenticed to:

Seoul
Kim Do Jung – 23 (Woo Chang Ku)
Cho Jae Ro – 21 (Bae Hou Jun)
Jung Hyun – 28 (Park Dae Heung)
Lee Hyun Jong – 21 (Park Jae Woo)
Ha Jung Hoon – 24 (Shin Sam Young

Busan
Park Jae Lee – 19 (Mun Je Bok)
Lee Yong Ho – 18 (Kang Byeong Eun)
Jin Gyeom – 20 (Youn Joo Hyuk)

New White Socks Beats Daegunhwang And Sets Track Record

New White Socks stunned Daegunhwang and in doing so, broke the Seoul Racecourse track record for 1700M (approximately eight and a half furlongs).

Class 2 Handicap – Seoul Racecourse – 1700M – June 13, 2015

1. New White Socks (KOR) [Secret Weapon – Wonder Queen (Canadian Silver)] – Moon Se Young – 4.8, 1.2
2. Daegunhwang (KOR) [Menifee – Lusi Pond (Elusive Quality)] – Seo Seung Un – 1.1
3. Ilgi Dangcheon (KOR) [Peace Rules – Mucha Prisa (Wild Again)] – Kim Hye Sun – 1.7
Distances: 1.75 lengths / 6 lengths – 8 ran

The record had stood since July 2009 when set by Green Jewel but with the track racing fast at the moment it was no real surprise to see it go today.

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New White Socks' new record

However, most money would have been on Daegunhwang and not New White Socks to be the one to do it. They finished 4th and 12th respectively in the Korean Derby last month and while both also held wins over this distance, it was Daegunhwang who was sent off as the odds-on favourite.

Ilgi Dangcheon set a very brisk early pace and the two favourites let him get on with it until he came back to them turning for home. Under Moon Se Young, New White Socks hit the front first and never let go as Daegunhwang chased in vain.

New White Socks crossed the line a length and a half in front and shaved one tenth of a second off the record which now stands at 1.48.3.  He now has 6 wins from 9 career starts.

The Korean Oaks 2015: First Preview

We’re just over a week away from the Korean Oaks and thirteen are currently set to line up for the fillies’ Classic at Busan Racecourse on Sunday June 21.

Eurofighter was the last filly from Seoul to win the Korean Oaks

Eurofighter was the last filly from Seoul to win the Korean Oaks

For the first time since 2012, there isn’t a Derby winner among them. Speedy First and Queen’s Blade completed the Derby/Oaks double in 2013 and 2014 respectively but this year, only two fillies took their chance in the Derby and of those only Smart Time, who was 7th, is also entered here.

Meni Money heads a five-strong challenge from Seoul. She won an early Oaks trial in the capital in March and is on a five-race unbeaten streak. The last filly from Seoul to win the Oaks was Eurofighter in 2010.

We will have a full preview of the race next week but in the meantime, here are the horses left in (Name [Pedigree] (Starts/1st/2nd/3rd) Trainer (Home track):

The Korean Oaks (KOR G2) – Busan Racecourse – 1800M – June 21, 2015

Meni Money [Menifee – Pocketful Of Money (Running Stag)] (9/5/4/0) Kim Dong Kyun (Seoul)
Jibong Sarang [Officer – Meryl’s Spirit (Storm Boot)] (6/2/3/1) Kim Jae Seob (Busan)
Lucky Music [Creek Cat – Dangdae Jeil (Lucky Ruler)] (11/4/1/3) Seo Heung Soo (Seoul)
Queen Two Hearts [Menifee – Ghostly Gal (Silver Ghost)] (5/4/0/1) Yoo Byoung Bok (Busan)
Queen Creek Cat [Creek Cat – Hwamongnan (Umatilla)] (8/3/3/1) Kim Hyo Seob (Seoul)
Smart Time [Ft. Stockton – Charon (Jade Robbery)] (9/3/2/0) Kim Dong Kyun (Seoul)
Dangdae Cheonha [Forest Camp – Dangdaeteukgeup (Tayasu Meadow)] (9/2/5/0) Peter Wolsley (Busan)
Dia Girl [Didyme – Gild Regal (Gilded Time)] (9/3/2/1) Song Moon Gil (Seoul)
Jangpung Parang [Creek Cat – Ascend The Throne (Silver Charm)] (8/3/2/2) Kim Young Kwan (Busan)
Hot Commend [Commendable – Hot Red (Thunder Gulch)] (6/1/2/0) Yoo Byoung Bok (Busan)
Grace [Vicar – Attendance (A.P. Indy)] – Baik Kwang Youl (Busan)
Pandora [Menifee – Format II (Furiously)] (9/1/0/3) Kim Jae Seob (Busan)
Purple Ocean [Volponi – Espirito (Prince Of Birds)] (4/1/0/0) An Woo Sung (Busan)

Weekend Round-Up: Tanaka Takes Busan Feature / Singgeureounachim Evergreen At Seoul / MERS Hits Legal Betting

Esmeraldina’s Ttukseom Cup win was the top story of the weekend, but there was plenty of other action going on too.

Down at Busan, the feature race of the weekend was somewhat overshadowed by events at Seoul 30 minutes previously but it ended in another Japanese success as Masa Tanaka rode 8/1 shot Ildeung Hanghaesa to victory.

4-year-old Ildeung Hanghaesa (Ecton Park), who beat second-favourite Dynamic Dash by 4-lengths, was winning for the 5th time in total and the first time at class 1. As for Tanaka, the Japanese rider has started a countdown to his 100th Korean winner and is now on 72.

In addition to the Ttukseom Cup, there was class 1 action at Seoul too and it was a return to the winner’s circle for the first time in over a year for one of the stalwarts of the track, Singgeureounachim. The 7-year-old was sent off at odds of 35/1 but under apprentice Kim Dong Soo (which got him a 2kg weight allowance) he ran on for victory by just under a length from joint-favourite Best Run. It was a 10th career win for Singgeureounachim (Exploit) on his 50th career start.

Earlier on Sunday at Seoul, jockey Djordje Perovic, who has impressed a number of observers in his short time here so far, got his first Korean winner.

On a weekend which saw attendance at both KBO baseball and K-League football matches drop by 40% due to public fears over the MERS virus (or as Yonhap News ever so slightly melodramatically put it, South Korea is currently “an ailing nation in the grip of a deadly virus”), it was inevitable that racing was going to suffer too.

As it was, while the infield family park was nearly deserted, betting turnover was also down on Sunday to an average KRW 4.1 Billion per race from KRW 4.4 Billion per race last week. It was the lowest of the year so far. Online betting is illegal in Korea and the legal telephone betting service that was previously offered was forcibly shut down by the government a few years ago.

You have to physically go to the track or an OTB if you want a legal punt. The MERS panic is a demonstration of one of the deficiencies of that policy and no doubt the illegal bookies were cheering it all the way to the bank.

Djordje Perovic Gets Off The Mark At Seoul

Djordje Perovic has ridden his first winner in South Korea. The 33-year-old partnered Gold Mountain to a 5-length victory in race 6 on the Ttukseom Cup undercard at Seoul Racecourse today.

It was Perovic’s first winner in Seoul and came on his 35th ride in the Korean capital. Crucially, it was one of the first he’d had that had been given much of a chance pre-race.

Perovic has two more rides later in the day and the chance of at least one more winner. His win added to the three second places and a third he’d already managed.

The other two foreign jockeys at the track, Jarred Samuel and Rakesh Bhaugeerothee are still working for their first wins. Hopefully they are not too far away.

Ttukseom Cup D-5: Japan’s Esmeraldina Heads 13 Left In

There are thirteen left in this coming Sunday’s Ttukseom Cup at Seoul Racecourse, the track’s first International Open race. They are headed by Japan-based Esmeraldina, who arrived in Korea last week.

Esmeraldina

Esmeraldina

Esmeraldina’s connections have shrewdly opted to give the ride to Busan-based Japanese jockey Joe Fujii, a man who has won three big Stakes races in the Korean capital before; the Grand Prix Stakes, the Korean Derby and the Jeju Governor’s Cup. The four-year-old Esmeraldina has reportedly settled into Seoul Racecourse very well.

The other Japan-based filly initially entered to run, Robe De Soie, was unable to make the trip after suffering a bleeding attack.

Four are set to travel up from Busan with Heba and New York Blue among them with the rest coming from the home track.

We will have a full preview after final declarations later in the week but in the meantime, here is a run-down of those left in with pedigree (Starts/1st/2nd/3rd) and home track:

Ttukseom Cup (KOR G3) – Seoul Racecourse – 1400M (Fillies & Mares 5yo and down) – June 7, 2015

Cheonnyeon Dongan (KOR) [Ecton Park – Honeycakes (Hennessy)] (22/10/5/3) Seoul
Ua Deungseon (KOR) [Menifee – Singgeureoun (Mr. Adorable)] (13/6/0/1) Seoul
Geumbit Hwanhui (KOR) [Peace Rules – Sincheongchun (Silent Warrior)] (16/5/3/2) Seoul
Joy Lucky (KOR) [Vicar – Proper Gun (Prosper Fager)] (16/10/1/0) Seoul
Esmeraldina (USA) [Harlan’s Holiday – Tasha’s Star (Spanish Steps)] Japan
My Day (KOR) [Touch Gold – Smart Advice (Smart Strike)] (30/11/7/4) Seoul
Bichui Jeongsang (USA) [Wildcat Heir – Persimmon Honey (Colonial Affair)] (12/5/4/0) Seoul
Heba (USA) [Peace Rules – Sue’s Temper (Temperence Hill)] (30/7/5/1) Busan
Halla Chukje (USA) [Gottcha Gold – C D Player (Montbrook)] (19/3/4/1) Seoul
Golden Lass (KOR) [Ecton Park – Golden Eagle (Big Sur)] (12/4/2/3) Busan
Fly Top Queen (USA) [Henny Hughes – Cape Discovery (Cape Town)] (15/7/1/1) Seoul
New York Blue (USA) [Candy Ride – Aim For The Moon (Deputy Minister)] (17/5/7/1) Busan
Ms. Margaux (USA) [Midnight Lute – Sixtyone Margaux (Cozzene)] (17/1/7/7) Busan