Liberty Island (horse)

She made her debut at a 2-year-old debut race at Niigata Racecourse on July 30, 2022; at a length of 1,600 meters. With Yuga Kawada as her jockey, she was the most favored to win with the odds of 2.1.[3] At the race, she showed her legs at the fourth corner, where she went up from 7th place and beat Cruzeiro do Sul by 0.5 seconds, or three lengths.[3] She ran the last three furlongs in 31.4 seconds (≒68.8 km/h). This was the same record pace that Ruggero set on May of that year at the Idaten Stakes, setting a tied record. After the race, Kawada commented "things went just like during training. She is a horse that I look forward to growing up."[4]

It was briefly reported that she would race in the Niigata Nisai Stakes due to be held on August 28th,[5] but instead headed to the GIII Artemis Stakes.[6] Starting from post position #3, she was the most favored with the odds of 1.4.[7] During the race, she placed herself among the pack and tried to go in the outside but was blocked and was unable to escape the pack. At the end, she tried to catch up to Ravel who won from the outside but was beaten by that horse by a neck.[7][8]

External video
2022 阪神ジュベナイルフィリーズ レース映像 jraofficial（JRA公式YouTubeチャンネル）による動画

She was sent to the GI Hanshin Juvenile Fillies held on December 11 for her 3rd race, where she faced off not only the Artemis Stakes winner Ravel but also Cosmos Sho winner Moryana as well as Sapporo Nisai Stakes winner Dura　and Doe Eyes, who was in second place of that same race. She was once again the most favored, with the odds of 2.6.[9] Liberty Island placed herself at 9th place and ran the first 800 meters at a pace of 45.2 seconds, before advancing from the outside at the final stretch,[10] passing the other horses in front of her at a pace of 35.5seconds for the last three furlongs, winning her first Grade I race with a 2-and-a-half length lead against second place Shinryokuka.[9] This was the first time Kawada won the race, and this victory made him the third jockey to win all three of the GI races for two-year olds (the other two being the Asahi Hai Futurity Stakes and the Hopeful Stakes).[11] After the race, Kawada commented "I felt that she was not going to lose" and "between the paddock and the back of the gate, she focused even more, and she was looking even better. She showed such a great race, that I really don't have much to say about it."

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  2022 Hanshin JF

On January 10, the JRA Award was announced, and Liberty Island was voted Best Two-Year-Old Filly with all 288 votes voting for her.[12] On January 20, her owner, Sunday Racing, announced on their website that she would head straight to the Oka Sho, the first leg of the Japanese Triple Tiara that would be held on April 9 as her first race of the season.[13]

External video
2023 Oka Sho race footage uploaded on JRA's official YouTube channel

As previously announced, Liberty Island was entered in to the Oka Sho. She was once again the most favored with an odds of 1.6 in spite of the four months long break, as well as facing off other contenders such as Tulip Sho winner Mozu Meimei, Fillies' Revue winner Sing That Song, Kona Coast, Perifania, and Harper.[14] The horse had a minor setback at the gate, forcing her to race at the rear of the pack, with her still being at around the 16th place at the 4th corner. However, after going to the outside she ran at a pace of 32.9 seconds at the last 3 furlongs, catching Kona Coast and Perifania and winning the race. Kawada became the 6th jockey to win the race two years in a row, as he had won the last Oka Sho with Stars On Earth. This victory was also the first classic victory for Liberty Island's trainer, Mitsumasa Nakauchida.[15]

External video
2023 Oka Sho jockey camera footage uploaded on JRA's official YouTube channel

The JRA had implemented jockey cameras from spring of that year. At the Oka Sho, a camera was mounted on Kawada's helmet, and the filmed video was uploaded to YouTube on their official channel. The video, which contained moments of Kawada talking to his horse gently, became viral, being viewed over 200,000 times in the first 3 hours, and becoming a trending topic on Twitter.[16]

External video
2023 Yushun Himba race footage uploaded on JRA's official YouTube channel

External video
2023 Yushun Himba jockey camera footage uploaded on JRA's official YouTube channel

The horse was briefly sent to pasture before returning to the stable on April 29 in preparation for her next race, the Yushun Himba. The horse was entered on to the race as planned with an odds of 1.4, making her by far the most favored.[17] She entered the starting gate calmly and made a good start. Rather than racing from the back of the pack like her previous race, she raced from the forward. She placed herself at around 6th place at around the 1000 meter mark, which was covered in exactly one minute. As the horse entered the final corner the horse started to push forward, After passing Ravel at around the 200 meter mark, she lengthened her lead further, passing the finishing line with a 6 lengths lead against Harper and Dura. This lead was the largest gap at the Yushun Himba since 1984, when races were first graded, surpassing the 5 lengths lead that Gentildonna set in 2012.[18]

Her 3rd GI victory marked the 2nd year in a row where two of the Triple Tiaras were won by the same horse, and 17th ever in history. She also became the 13th horse for a horse named Best Two-Year-Old Filly to win the Yushun Himba. For Kawada, this was the second time he won the race since Gentildonna. This also became the first GI race Nakauchida won where the race held at a distance of over 2,000 meters. After the race, Kawada told reporters that "he was able to race at a good rhythm" and that he "was glad that the horse became a Double Crown horse, and also proud that he was able to show the horse being strong."[19][20][21][22][23]

On May 25, the JRA announced the rating for the Yushun Himba. Liberty Island earned 120 pounds, which made her the highest rated in Yushun Himba history; with other Yushun Himba winners such as Gentildonna, Soul Stirring, Almond Eye, and Stars on Earth only earning 115. The following day, Liberty Island was sent to pasture at Northern Farm Shigaraki. It was also announced that the horse, rather than sending her to a trial race, would instead be going straight to the Shuka Sho in fall, with the intention of making her the first Triple Tiara winner since Daring Tact from 2020.[24]

On October 15, she was entered in to the Shuka Sho as previously announced, with the odds at 1.1, making her by far the msot favored to win.[25] After making a good start, she placed herself in te middle of the pack. At around the 3rd corner she moved to the outside of the pack and started to make her move, and after taking the lead at the 4th corner she crossed the finish line without letting any other horse contest the lead; making her the 7th horse ever to win the Japanese Triple Tiara, and the first time since Daring Tact in 2020.[26]

It was later announced that her next race would be the Japan Cup. It was also announced that as a second option, the horse was also pre-registered for the Hong Kong Cup.[27]

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  2023 Oka Sho
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  2023 Oaks Ceremony