#ArcRoad: Japanese quartet earmarked for the Qatar Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe

The Japanese are due to turn out in force in the 2019 edition of the Qatar Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe (Gr1) which will be run at ParisLongchamp on Sunday, October 6. This follows the confirmation that the Japanese owner, Masaaki Matsushima, has acquired the three-year-old Broome (Galileo) from Coolmore. Broome will remain in training in Ireland with Aidan O’Brien and the latter said: "He is a very good colt and it’s great for his new Japanese owner. The aim is to head for the ‘Arc’, although he may tackle the Doncaster St Leger (Gr1) on September 14 prior to ParisLongchamp. We will decide nearer the time."

Broome will be ridden by Yutaka Take who enjoys ‘cult’ status in his native Japan. Yutaka Take is a very close friend of Masaaki Matsushima and he was instrumental in the latter’s decision to get involved in the sport by buying racehorses. The Japanese owner has since let it be known that his dream is to fulfil that of Yutaka Take: namely that of winning the Qatar Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe. Broome will, therefore, race in Japanese colours in the Arc. Although he is a smart colt, he will need to improve further if he is to triumph in the Qatar Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe. He finished a close fourth in Epsom Derby (Gr1) to Anthony Van Dyck (Galileo), before disappointing in the Irish Derby (Gr1) in which he was a distant sixth.

Four horses carrying Japanese colours are due to take the stage. Four horses carrying Japanese colours are expected to line up for the 2019 renewal of the Qatar Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe 2019, and three of them are trained in the land of the rising sun: Kiseki (Rulership), Fièrement (Deep Impact) and Blast Onepiece (Harbinger). Kiseki is already in situ at Chantilly following his arrival on the evening of Wednesday, August 21. The plan is for him to tackle the Qatar Prix Foy (Gr2) at ParisLongchamp on September 15. Blast Onepiece and Fièrement both reappeared in the Sapporo Kinen (Gr2 over 1m1/4) on Sunday, August 18. Blast Onepiece won the race and sealed his passage for the Qatar Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe, in which he is expected to have the services of jockey Yuga Kawada. Fièrement was a creditable third in the same race. After a wide trip, he was noted finishing strongly over a distance which is on the sharp side of him. This also ensured that he will be heading towards the Arc. He will be better for the step up to 2 400 metres and will be ridden by Christophe Lemaire: the French jockey who has become a well-established figure in Japan and who, in 2018, set a new record for the number of winners ridden in a single season.