Japanese Horse Racing Calendar

Japanese Horse Racing Calendar: Major G1 Races, Month by Month

Japan's racing year at a glance

Japan's racing is built differently from Britain's, Ireland's or France's. There are no big multi-day festivals. Instead the Japan Racing Association (JRA) puts on a steady series of Group 1 races, nearly all of them on Sundays, spread evenly through the year at a small number of big racecourses: Tokyo, Nakayama, Hanshin, Kyoto and Chukyo.

The result is a very clear calendar. There's a Group 1 on most Sundays through the spring and autumn, a quieter summer, and a run of big races from October to December that builds to the year-end Arima Kinen.

It's also a country where quality has caught up with the rest of the world. Japanese-bred and trained horses now compete at the top level across Europe, America, Dubai and Hong Kong, and the Japan Cup was created in 1981 to prove it could hold its own against the best international runners.

Key 2027 dates for the major races

These dates come from the JRA's 2027 racing schedule, which is currently a draft awaiting ministerial approval. Dates can move, so check the JRA site before you book travel. Every race below is on a Sunday.

Japan Racing Calendar

February and March: the season opens

The first Group 1 of the Japanese Horse Racing Calendar is the February Stakes at Tokyo, run on dirt over 1,600 metres. It opens the JRA season and is the first big clue about the dirt horses for the year.

A few weeks later the first big turf race is the Takamatsunomiya Kinen at Chukyo, a Group 1 sprint over 1,200 metres, and the top sprint of the spring.

April: the Classics begin

Spring is when the three-year-old Classics start, and they run in a tidy order across consecutive Sundays.

Osaka Hai (Hanshin, 4 April): a 2,000 metre race for older horses and one of the first big middle-distance tests of the year.
Oka Sho (Hanshin, 11 April): the Japanese 1000 Guineas, the first leg of the fillies' Triple Crown, over a mile.
Satsuki Sho (Nakayama, 18 April): the Japanese 2000 Guineas, run over 2,000 metres and the first leg of the colts' Triple Crown.

May: Tenno Sho, the Mile and the Oaks

Tenno Sho (Spring) (Kyoto, 2 May): the Emperor's Cup, a marathon over 3,200 metres for older horses.
NHK Mile Cup (Tokyo, 9 May): a mile race for three-year-olds.
Victoria Mile (Tokyo, 16 May): a Group 1 mile for fillies and mares.
Yushun Himba (Tokyo, 23 May): the Japanese Oaks, over 2,400 metres for three-year-old fillies.

Late May and June: the Japanese Derby

The Tokyo Yushun, the Japanese Derby, is run at Tokyo over 2,400 metres on Sunday 30 May 2027. It's the biggest race of the Japanese year for three-year-olds and the second leg of the Triple Crown, and it draws huge crowds.

It's followed by the Yasuda Kinen (Tokyo, 6 June), a top mile race for older horses, and the Takarazuka Kinen (Hanshin, 13 June), a Group 1 over 2,200 metres. The Takarazuka is a fan-voted race, meaning the public picks many of the runners, and it's the big mid-year race for older horses.

July to September: a quieter summer

The JRA moves to the smaller summer courses at Sapporo, Hakodate, Fukushima, Niigata and Kokura, and there are no Group 1 races in July or August. The best races are Group 2 and 3 contests such as the Sapporo Kinen.

The Group 1s return in late September with the Sprinters Stakes at Nakayama (26 September), a top sprint over 1,200 metres.

October: the autumn Group 1s

October is another packed month in the Japanese Horse Racing Calendar.

Shuka Sho (Kyoto, 17 October): the final leg of the fillies' Triple Crown, over 2,000 metres.
Kikuka Sho (Kyoto, 24 October): the Japanese St Leger and the last leg of the Triple Crown, run over 3,000 metres.
Tenno Sho (Autumn) (Tokyo, 31 October): the Emperor's Cup, this time over 2,000 metres, and one of the best races of the autumn for older horses.

A horse that wins the Satsuki Sho, Tokyo Yushun and Kikuka Sho in the same season is a Triple Crown winner, one of the highest honours in Japanese racing.

Orion The Thanks, First Japan Triple Crown Winner

November: the Japan Cup

Queen Elizabeth II Cup (Kyoto, 14 November): a Group 1 for fillies and mares over 2,200 metres.
Mile Championship (Kyoto, 21 November): the top mile race of the autumn.
Japan Cup (Tokyo, 28 November): the headline race of the year. It's run over 2,400 metres on the last Sunday of November, and it's open to international runners. The race goes off at around 3.40pm local time, which is about 6.40am in the UK.

December: Arima Kinen

Arima Kinen

Champions Cup (Chukyo, 5 December): the top dirt race of the year, over 1,800 metres.
Hanshin Juvenile Fillies (12 December) and Asahi Hai Futurity Stakes (19 December): the two big races for two-year-olds, both over a mile at Hanshin.
Arima Kinen (Nakayama, 26 December): the year-end Grand Prix, run over 2,500 metres. Fans vote for the runners, and it's the best-supported race of the year. The Hopeful Stakes follows two days later.

Local racing run by the regional governments (known as NAR) carries on alongside, at tracks such as Oi and Funabashi, with the Tokyo Daishoten at Oi as the big year-end race.

Japanese Horse Racing Calendar FAQ

When is the Japan Cup in 2027? Sunday 28 November 2027, at Tokyo Racecourse. It's always run on the last Sunday of November.

When is the Japanese Derby in 2027? The Tokyo Yushun is on Sunday 30 May 2027, at Tokyo over 2,400 metres.

When is the Arima Kinen in 2027? Sunday 26 December 2027, at Nakayama.

What is the Japanese Triple Crown? The Satsuki Sho, Tokyo Yushun and Kikuka Sho. The fillies have their own: the Oka Sho, Yushun Himba and Shuka Sho.

What are the biggest races in Japan? The Tokyo Yushun, Japan Cup and Arima Kinen are the three big ones. The Tenno Sho (Spring and Autumn) and Takarazuka Kinen are close behind.

Is there racing in Japan every month? Yes, but the Group 1 races are concentrated in spring and autumn. There are none in July or August.

World Horse Racing Calendar