Epiphaneia ( ja, エピファネイア, link=no, foaled 11 February 2010) is a Japanese

Thoroughbred The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed. Thoroughbreds are c ...

racehorse. In 2012, he was unbeaten in three races including the Grade III Radio Nikkei Hai Nisai Stakes. In the following year, he finished second in both the

Satsuki Sho Satsuki is a traditional Japanese name for the month of . It is commonly used as a feminine given name and, more rarely, as a surname or a masculine name. Possible spellings Satsuki can be spelled using different ''kanji'' characters and can mean: ...

and the

Tokyo Yushun Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...

before winning the

Kobe Shimbun Hai The Kobe Shimbun Hai (Japanese 神戸新聞杯) is a Japanese Grade 2 flat horse race in Japan for three-year-old Thoroughbreds. It is run over a distance of 2400 metres at Hanshin Racecourse in September, but was contested over 2000 metres unti ...

and the Kikuka Sho. He recorded his biggest success in 2014 when winning the

Japan Cup The is one of the most prestigious horse races in Japan. It is contested on the last Sunday of November, post time of 15:40 at Tokyo Racecourse in Fuchu, Tokyo at a distance of 2400 meters (about miles) run under weight for age conditions with ...

Background

Epiphaneia is a bay horse with a white

star A star is an astronomical object comprising a luminous spheroid of plasma (physics), plasma held together by its gravity. The List of nearest stars and brown dwarfs, nearest star to Earth is the Sun. Many other stars are visible to the naked ...

bred in Japan by Northern Farm. He was sired by

Symboli Kris S Symboli Kris S (, foaled January 21, 1999 in the United States – December 8, 2020) is a retired Japanese Thoroughbred race horse. He was voted Japanese Horse of the Year in 2002 and 2003. He was retired at the end of 2003 and was syndicated ...

, an American-bred stallion who was twice voted

Japanese Horse of the Year The Japanese Horse of the Year is the highest honor given in Japanese thoroughbred horse racing. It is awarded annually by the Japan Racing Association (JRA). Since 1987 the honor has been part of the JRA Awards. This award originally started as p ...

. At stud, he has sired several other major winners including Strong Return (

Yasuda Kinen The Yasuda Kinen (English: Yasuda Memorial, Japanese and Chinese language: 安田記念) is a Japanese International Grade I Thoroughbred horse race held at the Tokyo Racecourse in Tokyo. Raced annually each June, the Yasuda Kinen is run at a dis ...

), Success Brocken (

February Stakes The is a Grade 1 flat horse race in Japan for four-year-old and above thoroughbreds. It is run over a distance of 1,600 metres (approximately 8 furlongs) at Tokyo Racecourse in late February. It was first run in 1984 as February Handicap, and wa ...

) and Alfredo (

Asahi Hai Futurity Stakes The Asahi Hai Futurity Stakes (朝日杯フューチュリティステークス) is a one mile turf stakes race for thoroughbred colts two years old. It is considered the ''de facto'' year-end championship for Japanese thoroughbred racing in the t ...

). Epiphaneia's dam Cesario was an outstanding racemare who won the

Yushun Himba The , also known as the is a Japanese Grade 1 flat horse race for three-year-old thoroughbred fillies run over a distance of 2,400 metres (approximately 1 mile 4 furlongs) at the Tokyo Racecourse, Fuchū, Tokyo in May. History It was first run i ...

and the

American Oaks The American Oaks is a Grade I American thoroughbred horse race for three-year-old fillies over a distance of one and one-quarter miles on the turf held annually in late December Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California, USA. The event currently of ...

and was voted the

JRA Award for Best Three-Year-Old Filly The JRA Award for Best Three-Year-Old Filly is a title awarded annually by the Japan Racing Association The Japan Racing Association ( ja, 日本中央競馬会 Nippon Chūō Keiba Kai, or JRA) is a public company established to operate Chūō Keib ...

in 2005. Her other foals have included

Saturnalia Saturnalia is an ancient Roman festival and holiday in honour of the god Saturn, held on 17 December of the Julian calendar and later expanded with festivities through to 23 December. The holiday was celebrated with a sacrifice at the Temple ...

and

Leontes King Leontes is a fictional character in Shakespeare's play ''The Winter's Tale''. He is the father of Mamillius and husband to Queen Hermione. He becomes obsessed with the belief that his wife has been having an affair with Polixenes, his childh ...

. As a descendant of The Oaks winner Pia, Cesario was related to other major winners, including

Chief Singer Chief Singer (19 March 1981 – 2000) was an Irish-bred British-trained Thoroughbred racehorse and sire. In a racing career which lasted from June 1983 until September 1984 he ran nine times and won four races. The colt won the Group Thre ...

and

Pleasantly Perfect Pleasantly Perfect (April 2, 1998 – June 3, 2020) was a Thoroughbred racehorse who retired as the fourth-richest American horse in career earnings. Background Pleasantly Perfect was sired by Pleasant Colony, winner of the 1981 Kentucky Derby ...

. During his racing career, Epiphaneia was owned by U Carrott Farm and trained by

Katsuhiko Sumii (born 28 March 1964, Kanazawa, Ishikawa) is a Japanese horse trainer. He trained the first and second placing horses in the 2006 Melbourne Cup, Delta Blues and Pop Rock. Other notable horses Sumii has trained include Kane Hekili, Vodka, Victo ...

. He has been ridden in most of his races by

Yuichi Fukanaga Yūichi, Yuichi, or Yuuichi is a masculine Japanese given name. Possible writings Yūichi can be written using different combinations of kanji characters. Here are some examples: *勇一, "courage, 1" *祐一, "to help, 1" *祐市, "to help, cit ...

Racing career

2012: two-year-old season

Epiphaneia was undefeated in three starts as a two-year-old in 2012. He made his racecourse debut in a

maiden race In horse racing a maiden race is an event for horses that have not won a race. Horses that have not won a race are referred to as maidens. Maiden horse races are held over a variety of distances and under conditions with eligibility based on the se ...

over 1800 metres at

Kyoto Racecourse is located in Fushimi-ku, Kyoto, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan. It is used for horse racing. It has a capacity of 120,000. It was built in 1999. History Kyoto Race Course opened on December 1, 1925. In preparation for the track's 100th anniversary ...

on 21 October and won from Red Giselle. At the same course in November, he won the Listed Kyoto Nisai Stakes over 2000 metres, beating Dantsu Atlas. In December, he was moved up in class for the Grade III Radio Nikkei Hai Nisai Stakes at

Hanshin Racecourse is located in Takarazuka, Hyogo, Japan. It has a capacity of 139,000 and it is used for horse racing. The land was originally owned by Kawanishi Aircraft Company, which manufactured combat planes during World War II. After the World War II, GH ...

. Starting the 0.9/1 favourite, he won by half a

length Length is a measure of distance. In the International System of Quantities, length is a quantity with dimension distance. In most systems of measurement a base unit for length is chosen, from which all other units are derived. In the Interna ...

from Bad Boy, with

Kizuna is a Japanese word meaning "bond". It may also refer to: Music * ''Kizuna'' (album), a 2022 album by JO1 * "Kizuna" (Aya Matsuura song) * "Kizuna" (Aya Ueto song) * "Kizuna" (Orange Range song) * "Kizuna", a song from the anime Mermaid Melody Pich ...

a neck away in third.

2013: three-year-old season

Epiphaneia made his three-year-old debut in the Grade II Hochi Hai Yayoi Sho over 2000 metres at

Nakayama Racecourse is located in Funabashi, Chiba, Japan. It is used for horse racing. It has a capacity of 165,676. It was built in 1990. Physical attributes Nakayama Race Course has two grass courses, a dirt course, and a jump course. The turf's measures 1840 ...

in which he was ridden for the first and only time by

William Buick William Buick (born 22 July 1988) is a Norwegian-British flat jockey. He shared the champion apprentice jockey title in 2008 with David Probert and won the Lester Award for Apprentice Jockey of the Year in 2007 and 2008. From 2010 to 2014 he w ...

. He started the 1.3/1 favourite and finished fourth in a blanket finish behind Camino Tassajara, Miyaji Taiga, and Codino, with Kizuna in fifth. On 14 April, over the same course and distance, the colt started the 2.9/1 second favourite for the Grade I

and finished second of the eighteen runners, beaten half a length by the favourite Logotype. Epiphaneia was then moved up in distance for the

over 2400 metres at

Tokyo Racecourse is located in Fuchu, Tokyo, Japan. Built in 1933 for horse racing, it is considered the "racecourse of racecourses" in Japanese horseracing. It has a capacity of 223,000, with seating for 13,750. Tokyo Racecourse hosts numerous G1 (Grade 1) r ...

on 26 May. Starting at odds of 5.1/1 in an eighteen runner-field he finished second again, beaten half a length by Kizuna, with Apollo Sonic, Peptide Amazon, and Logotype in third, fourth and fifth. After the summer break, Epiphaneia returned in the Grade II Kobe Shimbun Hai (a trial race for the Kikuka Sho) over 2400 metres at Hanshin on 22 September. He started the 2/5 favourite against seventeen opponents and won by two and a half lengths from Majesty Hearts. At Kyoto on 20 October, Epiphaneia started 3/5 favourite for the Kikuka Sho over 3000 metres. He tracked the pace-setters Bande and Neko Taisho before taking the lead 400 metres from the finish and recorded his first Grade I success, beating Santono Noblesse by five lengths. After the race, Fukunaga told the ''

Japan Times ''The Japan Times'' is Japan's largest and oldest English-language daily newspaper. It is published by , a subsidiary of News2u Holdings, Inc.. It is headquartered in the in Kioicho, Chiyoda, Tokyo. History ''The Japan Times'' was launched by ...

'', "He ran a perfect race. He was so calm prior to the start that I was worried he might not leave the gate on time. But he started well, and we knew which two horses were going to set the pace so all I had to do was focus on settling him".

2014: four-year-old season

Epiphaneia began his third season in the Grade II Sankei Osaka Hai over 2000 metres at Hanshin on 6 April. He started the 9/10 favourite and finished third of the eight runners behind Kizuna and Tokai Paradise. Later that month, the colt represented Japan in the

Queen Elizabeth II Cup The Queen Elizabeth II Cup is a Group One Thoroughbred horse race at Sha Tin Racecourse in the New Territories, Hong Kong. Established in 1975 by the Royal Hong Kong Jockey Club, it is run annually in April at a distance of 2,000 metres (ten ...

Sha Tin Racecourse Sha Tin Racecourse is one of the two racecourses for horse racing in Hong Kong. It is located in Sha Tin District, Sha Tin in the New Territories. It is managed by Hong Kong Jockey Club. Penfold Park is encircled by the track, and the Hon ...

in Hong Kong. Starting at odds of 11/5, he finished fourth behind

Designs On Rome Designs On Rome (foaled 17 March 2010) is an Irish-bred Thoroughbred racehorse. He is best known for his performances in Hong Kong where he was named Horse of the Year in 2014. Background Designs On Rome is a bay gelding bred in Ireland by th ...

Military Attack An offensive is a military operation that seeks through an aggressive projection of armed forces to occupy territory, gain an objective or achieve some larger strategic, operational, or tactical goal. Another term for an offensive often used by t ...

and the

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

n challenger

Vercingetorix Vercingetorix (; Greek: Οὐερκιγγετόριξ; – 46 BC) was a Gallic king and chieftain of the Arverni tribe who united the Gauls in a failed revolt against Roman forces during the last phase of Julius Caesar's Gallic Wars. Despite h ...

. On his first appearance of his autumn campaign, Epiphaneia contested the

Tenno Sho The is a horse race held twice a year in Japan, once in the spring and once in the autumn. "Tenno" means "Emperor of Japan". The races are both International Grade I races. Prior to the 2007 races, both Tenno Sho races were Japanese domestic Gr ...

over 2000 metres at Tokyo and finished sixth of the eighteen runners behind the five-year-old

Spielberg Steven Allan Spielberg (; born December 18, 1946) is an American director, writer, and producer. A major figure of the New Hollywood era and pioneer of the modern blockbuster, he is the most commercially successful director of all time. Spie ...

Christophe Soumillon Christophe Soumillon (born 4 June 1981) is a Belgian jockey based in France. Career Coming from a racing background, Soumillon is the son of jump jockey Jean-Marc Soumillon. He rode in pony races and left Belgium aged fifteen to go to the racing ...

took over the ride from Fukunaga when Epihaneia contested the 33rd running of the

over 2400 metres in front of a crowd of 100,186 at Tokyo on 30 November. He started at odds of 7.9/1 in a field which included

Trading Leather Trading Leather (20 March 2010 – 30 November 2014) was an Irish Thoroughbred racehorse best known for winning the 2013 Irish Derby. The horse died following an injury sustained in the 2014 Japan Cup. Background Trading Leather was a dark ...

from Ireland, Ivanhowe from Germany, and Up With The Birds from Canada. The locally trained runners included

Gentildonna is a retired Japanese thoroughbred racehorse. In 2012 she won the Japanese Fillies Triple Crown and was voted Japanese Horse of the Year. She was also the first three-year-old filly to win the Japan Cup, in 2012, and the following year became th ...

, who was attempting to win the race for an unprecedented third time,

Just A Way Just A Way (Japanese ジャスタウェイ, foaled 8 March 2009) is a Japanese Thoroughbred racehorse. After showing useful, but unexceptional form in his early career he emerged as a major talent with a win in the 2013 Autumn edition of the Te ...

Harp Star Harp Star ( ja, ハープスター, link=no, foaled 24 April 2011) is a Japanese Thoroughbred racehorse. She was one of the leading two-year-old fillies in Japan in 2013 when she won the Niigata Nisai Stakes and was narrowly beaten in the Hansh ...

, and Spielberg. Epiphaneia tracked the leader, Satono Shuren, before taking the lead 400 metres from the finish. He accelerated clear in the closing stages to win by four lengths in a time of 2:23.1 from Just A Way with Spielberg half a length away in third ahead of Gentildonna, Harp Star, and Ivanhowe. After the race, Soumillon said, "The horse was very keen and I can't say I was very confident when I saw how he started because I saw I wouldn't be able to ride him the way the trainer asked: in sixth or seventh position...

t was T, or t, is the twentieth letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''tee'' (pronounced ), plural ''tees''. It is deri ...

an amazing performance". The Arima Kinen over 2500 metres at

on 28 December attracted its customary strong field, and Epiphaneia started second in the betting behind Gold Ship, with the other contenders including Just A Way and Gentildonna. Epiphaneia tracked the early leader, Verxina, before taking the lead 400 metres from the finish but was outpaced in the closing stages and finished fifth behind Gentildonna, To The World, Gold Ship, and Just A Way in a blanket finish.

2015: five-year-old season

For his 2015 debut, Epiphaneia was sent to the United Arab Emirates to contest the

Dubai World Cup The Dubai World Cup (Arabic: كأس دبي العالمي) is a Thoroughbred horse race held annually since 1996 and contested at the Meydan Racecourse (Arabic: ميدان) which in Arabic suggests a place wher ...

in which he raced on dirt for the first time. He was never in contention, finishing last of the nine runners behind Prince Bishop. In late June, it was announced that the horse would face a lengthy absence from racing after sustaining a

suspensory ligament A suspensory ligament is a ligament that supports a body part, especially an organ. Types include: * Suspensory ligament of axilla, also known as Gerdy's ligament * Cooper's ligaments, also known as the suspensory ligaments of Cooper or Suspensory ...

injury. He did not return to the track and was retired from racing at the end of the year.

Assessment and awards

In 2012, Epiphaneia finished second to Logotype in the voting for the

JRA Award for Best Two-Year-Old Colt The JRA Award for Best Two-Year-Old Colt is a title awarded annually by the Japan Racing Association The Japan Racing Association ( ja, 日本中央競馬会 Nippon Chūō Keiba Kai, or JRA) is a public company established to operate Chūō Keiba ( ...

In the following year, he finished runner-up to Kizuna in the poll for

JRA Award for Best Three-Year-Old Colt The JRA Award for Best Three-Year-Old Colt is a title awarded annually by the Japan Racing Association The Japan Racing Association ( ja, 日本中央競馬会 Nippon Chūō Keiba Kai, or JRA) is a public company established to operate Chūō Keiba ...

, taking 38 of the 280 votes. In the 2013 edition of the

2013 World's Best Racehorse Rankings The 2013 World's Best Racehorse Rankings, sponsored by Longines was the 2013 edition of the World's Best Racehorse Rankings. It was an assessment of Thoroughbred racehorses issued by the International Federation of Horseracing Authorities The Lon ...

, Epiphaneia was rated the 83rd best racehorse in the world and the 20th best three-year-old colt. In the 2014 JRA Awards, Epiphaneia finished third to Gentildonna and Just A Way in the poll for the

and runner-up to Just A Way in the voting for the Best Older Male Horse In the 2014 World's Best Racehorse Rankings, Epiphaneia was rated the second-best horse to race anywhere in the world in 2014 behind

and the best in the Long-distance division.

Stud Record

Epiphaneia began his stud career in 2016 at the

Shadai Stallion Station is a thoroughbred breeding facility located in Abira on the island of Hokkaido in Japan. The farm was begun in the late 1970s to early 1980s by the late Zenya Yoshida, and is now run jointly by his sons (Katsumi, Haruya, and Teruya Yoshida), known ...

. He sired the first undefeated Japanese Triple Tiara

Daring Tact Daring Tact ( ja, デアリングタクト, link=no, foaled 15 April 2017) is a champion Japanese Thoroughbred racehorse who won the Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing#Japan, Japanese Fillies Triple Crown in 2020. After winning her only race as ...

in his first crop of foals and Efforia, who went on to beat

Gran Alegria Gran Alegria ( ja, グランアレグリア, link=no, foaled 24 January 2016) is a Japanese Thoroughbred racehorse. After winning a minor race on her debut in 2018 she won the Saudi Arabia Royal Cup before running third in the Asahi Hai Futurity ...

Contrail Contrails (; short for "condensation trails") or vapor trails are line-shaped clouds produced by aircraft engine exhaust or changes in air pressure, typically at aircraft cruising altitudes several miles above the Earth's surface. Contrails ar ...

and

Chrono Genesis Chrono Genesis ( ja, クロノジェネシス, link=no, foaled 6 March 2016) is a Japanese Thoroughbred racehorse. She was one of the best two-year-old fillies in Japan when she won her first two races including the Ivy Stakes and then ran a clo ...

in Tenno Sho (Autumn) and

Arima Kinen The Arima Kinen (有馬記念) is a Grade I flat horse race in Japan open to Thoroughbreds which are three-years-old or above and the world's largest betting horserace.

respectively as a 3-year old colt, in his second crop. As of 2022 his stud service fee is ¥18,000,000.

Notable progeny

''c =

colt Colt(s) or COLT may refer to: *Colt (horse), an intact (uncastrated) male horse under four years of age People * Colt (given name) *Colt (surname) Places *Colt, Arkansas, United States *Colt, Louisiana, an unincorporated community, United States ...

, f =

filly A filly is a female horse that is too young to be called a mare. There are two specific definitions in use: *In most cases, a ''filly'' is a female horse under four years old. *In some nations, such as the United Kingdom and the United States, t ...

, g =

gelding A gelding is a castrated male horse or other equine, such as a pony, donkey or a mule. Castration, as well as the elimination of hormonally driven behavior associated with a stallion, allows a male equine to be calmer and better-behaved, makin ...

Pedigree

References

{{reflist 2010 racehorse births Racehorses bred in Japan Racehorses trained in Japan Japan Cup winners Thoroughbred family 16-a