Ascoli Piceno (

Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...

: アスコリピチェーノ, Foaled February 24, 2021) is an active Japanese

Thoroughbred The Thoroughbred is a list of horse breeds, horse breed developed for Thoroughbred racing, horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thorough ...

racehorse. She won the Hanshin Juvenile Fillies in 2023, and the

Victoria Mile The Victoria Mile () is a Graded stakes race, Grade 1 Flat racing, flat Horse racing, horse race in Japan for four-year-old and above thoroughbred Filly, fillies and mare (horse), mares. Organized by Japan Racing Association, it is run over a dista ...

in 2025. She was named after

Ascoli Piceno Ascoli Piceno (; ; ) is a (municipality) and capital of the province of Ascoli Piceno, in the Italy, Italian region of Marche. Geography The town lies at the confluence of the Tronto, River Tronto and the small Castellano (river), River Castell ...

, a city in

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

. She was awarded the JRA Award for Best Two-Year-Old Filly for 2023.

Racing career

2023: two-year-old season

Ascoli Piceno debuted at the Tokyo Racecourse on June 24, 2023, in a two-year-old newcomer race on turf at the distance of 1,400m. She was ridden by

Christophe Lemaire Christophe Patrice Lemaire (Japanese:, born 20 May 1979) is a French-born jockey. He has enjoyed much of his success on the Japanese flat racing circuit, with the most wins at Japan Racing Association racetracks for five consecutive years sin ...

, who let her settle at the back of the pack, then took the lead on the final straight, winning by two-and-a-half lengths. Two months later, on August 27, she raced in the Niigata Nisai Stakes for her first

graded stakes race A graded stakes race is a thoroughbred horse race in the United States that meets the criteria of the American Graded Stakes Committee of the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association (TOBA). A specific grade level (I, II, III or listed) is th ...

challenge. Ridden by Hiroshi Kitamura, she settled in the middle of the pack. On the final straight, she chased down the runaway horse Shonan Manuela and won by a length, successfully achieving her first graded stakes win. For the last race of her two-year-old season, she was signed-up for the Hanshin Juvenile Fillies held at

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

on December 10. This was her first grade-one stakes race. Ridden by Hiroshi Kitamura again, she settled in midfield. Entering the final straight, after passing a group of horses, she overtook Corazon Beat in the final furlong and held off the fast-finishing

Stellenbosch Stellenbosch (; )A Universal Pronouncing Gazetteer.
Thomas Baldwin ...

, winning the race by a neck. She achieved her first grade-one stakes victory while breaking the race record.

Racing statistics

Below data is based on data available on JBIS Search, and NetKeiba. ''Legend:''

;''Notes:''

Pedigree

* Her grand dam from the damside won the

Fillies' Mile The Fillies' Mile is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to two-year-old fillies. It is run on the Rowley Mile at Newmarket over a distance of 1 mile (1,609 metres), and it is sc ...

in 2007. * Her dam's sister Touching Speech won the Rose Stakes in 2015. * Other close relatives include

Henrythenavigator Henrythenavigator (foaled February 28, 2005) is an American-bred and Irish-trained Thoroughbred racehorse. He won the 2000 Guineas, the Irish 2,000 Guineas, the St. James's Palace Stakes and the Sussex Stakes in 2008. After he finished second i ...

, who won four group-one races including the 2008

2000 Guineas Stakes The 2000 Guineas Stakes is a Group 1 flat race in Great Britain open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run on the Rowley Mile at Newmarket over a distance of 1 mile (1.6 km) and scheduled to take place each year ...

; Magician, winner of the 2013

Irish 2,000 Guineas The Irish 2,000 Guineas is a Group 1 flat horse race in Ireland open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at the Curragh over a distance of 1 mile (1,609 metres), and it ...

and

Breeders' Cup Turf The Breeders' Cup Turf is a Weight for Age Thoroughbred horse race on turf for three-year-olds and up. It is held annually at a different racetrack in the United States or Canada as part of the Breeders' Cup World Championships. The race's current ...

; and Fashionista, winner of the 2020 JBC Ladies' Classic.

Footnotes

Notes

References

{{reflist Racehorses bred in Japan Racehorses trained in Japan Thoroughbred racehorses 2021 racehorse births Thoroughbred family 9-b