Tom Hashimoto:

Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. I’d like to thank The Jockey Club for the opportunity to speak here today at the most respected historical conference in American horse racing. Over the years, I have had the pleasure of attending racing events around the world. These experiences gave me a unique opportunity to appreciate the tradition and history and culture of racing in various countries. But one message stood out. Horse racing is an international sports entertainment, and the Thoroughbred is an asset that should be shared globally. Today, I’d like to share one aspect of how we have worked to protect and develop that asset in Japan by broadening racing’s appeal and attracting new generation of fans. JRA has a race called the "Arima Kinen,” which is held at the end of every year. What makes it unique is that fans help shape the field through voting, giving them a direct role in selecting the horses they most want to see compete. The race is known for producing the highest measuring turnover of any third race in the world. Let's take a look.

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Well, the "Arima Kinen” is one of the most successful examples of fan engagement in Japanese racing today. But JRA’s journey to this point has not always been smooth. I joined JRA in 2003, and as you can see here, turnover was in a severe slump. Then, in 2011, we were hit by the Great East Japan earthquake, which forced the suspension of racing and the closure of some OTBs. But what followed was a remarkable turnaround. Amongst the various factors behind JRA’s revival, one theme has been especially important - expanding racings reach beyond its traditional fanbase. Japan is currently facing the severe challenge of an aging population with a declining birthrate, and every industry is competing fiercely to attract the attention of younger generations. But overseas visitors to the Japanese racetacks often express the same surprise: “Why are there so many young people here?”

While JRA continues to view attracting younger generations as a serious challenge, the reason we have been relatively successful in doing may be linked to a certain concept JRA has been pursuing for many years. The concept is the “Pop-ification” of racing — the extent to which racing feels familiar to the general public and how frequently people can come into contact with it in their daily lives. Let me share some examples: JRA was quick to establish an online betting network. Today, the number of registrants for JRA’s online betting has exceeded seven million and over 80% of our turnover comes from online betting. Even when racing was conducted behind closed doors during the pandemic in 2020, we were able to continue racing without any disruption. Online wagering had already become part of our customers’ everyday lives.

For more than 35 years, JRA has featured famous celebrities in its promotional campaign across mass media advertising, digital content, and fan events to showcase the excitement and positive image of racing, strengthen its appeal, and increase engagement. These celebrities also serve as trophy presenters at major grade one races and appear at talk show events at racetracks, acting as a public “face” of JRA’s promotions.

At the same time, we have continuously invested in our racetracks to make them more welcoming and establish the racetrack as a fun leisure destination. Let me give you an example. In Japan, young women often play an influential role in shaping consumer trends. Recognizing this, JRA introduced female focused spaces at the racetrack known as "UMAJO Spots.” These spaces combined racing with lifestyle and leisure experiences, providing guidance on how to place bets while also offering drinks and sweets, interactions with miniature horses and retired racehorses, behind the scenes tours, and creative workshops.

These are just a few examples of the wide range of initiatives JRA has undertaken to make racing “pop” - more familiar, more accessible, and more present in people’s everyday lives. But JRA is not alone. In recent years, racing themed entertainment created by third parties, including TV dramas, games, and anime has also played a powerful role in bringing new audiences into the sport.

There are two recent example of this. The first is “Passing the Reins,” a fictional TV drama that portrays behind-the-scenes of racing. The series attracted tremendous attention and recorded very high viewership ratings in Japan last year. It introduced racing to many people who had never engaged with the sport before and contributed significantly to attracting new fans. The "Passing the Reins” is still available on Netflix in the United States as well, so please be sure to check it out. The second example is “Umamusume: Pretty Derby.” First, please take a look at this video.

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Well, some of you might be wondering: “Why are racehorses portrayed as adorable anime characters?" The answer lies in Japan’s highly developed and unique culture of anime, manga, games, and idols. Umamusume has gained widespread support for its unique gameplay elements, including high-quality 3D graphics, story lines based on historical facts, and faithful recreations of actual racetracks. When it was first introduced, many people in Japan assumed it would just appeal only to a domestic audience. However, this proved not to be the case. These are photos of a fan event at Santa Anita. I understand that similar events have taken place not only in the United States, but also in Asia, Europe, and South America since the English version of ”Umamusume – Pretty Derby” that we launched across 160 countries in June last year.

Why has "Umamusume” become a global hit? I believe the reason lies not just in the appeal of the characters, but in its simple and compelling storyline - overcoming hardships, meeting rivals, and continuing to pursue their dreams - a story that anyone can relate to. This is something it shares with the drama "Passing the Reins” that I mentioned earlier. Centered around the mobile game, "Umamusume” has successfully expanded its fanbase through a “media-mix” approach spanning manga, anime, music, movies, and live concerts. Remarkably, this enthusiasm has translated into real-world experiences, sparking a genuine interest in horse racing itself and driving fans to visit actual racetracks.

Because its characters are modeled after real racehorses, it has also produced a number of positive side benefits. It has increased interest in retired racehorses and inspired younger generations to visit farms and led to significant donations. Who could have imagined that a single piece of content could contribute to supporting retire racehorses, which is a critical issue for the entire racing industry? These two examples are underscored by a JRA survey of 300,000 participants, which found that the biggest factors driving new interest in racing last year were "Passing the Reins” and “Umamusume.” This suggests that, rather than relying solely on direct advertising, it is more effective to tap into media and cross-industry collaborations that allow people to encounter racing in their everyday lives and develop an interest in the sport.

At the same time, while this new wave of racing entertainment is rapidly drawing the attention of younger generations to our sport, there are also new challenges we must address. These include bridging the gap in expectations between traditional and new fans, as well as educating this fresh audience on how to interact with real horses, such as promoting proper manners when visiting farms. Raising awareness among new fans has become an important task. Real world racing and racehorses are not virtual. They are living, breathing creatures. It is essential for all fans to understand this. Under the shared passion for horse racing, we must respect one another and collaborate to shape racetracks and social media communities into positive, welcoming, multi-entertainment spaces where everyone can comfortably enjoy the sport.

In Japan, about 25% of people over the age of 20 are interested in horse racing. This may seem relatively high by international standards, but it also means that the remaining 75% still have no interest in racing. We see this as an opportunity for growth. Earlier, you saw the trend in JRA’s wagering turnover. That curve reflects powerful external forces, from economic conditions to social trends. While these are often beyond our control, I believe this is one area where we can change the game. It is a moment where horse racing reaches the 75% as “pop culture” and becomes part of their everyday life.

When we successfully attract those new fans, it is crucial to encourage a second and third visit and retain them. The atmosphere of major racing day is certainly exciting with a special charm that inspires people to share their experience on social media. However, that alone is not enough. To retain fans, racetracks must provide an environment that is always bright, fun, clean, and comfortable. They must provide warm hospitality and a customer-first experience while offering different attractions that appeal to a diverse range of customers. Ultimately, however, fan engagement depends on the quality of the product itself - the race. At JRA, we sometimes say that the race itself is our “only product."

How can we provide a more attractive racing program for our customers? In many ways, JRA’s history has been a history of pursuing that very question. In many countries, racehorses typically debut at age two and target the Triple Crown races at age three. However, those perform well in the Triple Crown sometimes retire to stud immediately after, which I find a bit disappointing. When these horses continue to race at age four and beyond, competing in championship races across different age groups, we can truly find out who the best horse is. There is immense drama and storytelling in that process. And I believe that is exactly what racing fans and we as racing professionals are hoping for. By attracting more runners, increasing field sizes, making races more competitive, and providing high-quality races, we aim to create a product that fans will want to follow.

We want people to feel - “I want to come back to the racetrack. I want to watch more racing. I want to bet.” I believe constantly exploring how to create more attractive race programming with the customer in mind is one of the most important responsibilities of a racing authority. I’d like to end on the note that horse racing is an animal sport, and we must always put the horse first. At the same time, if we are to pass our sport on to the next generation, we must continue finding ways to attract new audiences and make racing a more familiar part of everyday life.

Building on this, we need to consider from many angles what the best path forward is for Triple Crown races, Classic races, and major racing events in our respective countries and regions, while also keeping an international outlook. As we can see from the international participation in races such as Kentucky Derby and the Breeders’ Cup, horse racing is no longer the concern of any one country alone. For horses and racing connections from South America, Europe, Africa, the Middle East, Asia, Oceania, and Japan, many major U.S. races have become very important fixtures on the global racing calendar. As I said at the beginning, horse racing is an international sports entertainment and the Thoroughbred is an asset that should be shared globally. So how can horse racing become more pop? I believe this is not a challenge for any one country. It is a question that the global racing industry must address together as we look to the future.

To pass on this remarkable sport to the next generation and to ensure a positive future for horse racing, we must work together, not only within our own countries, but across borders. Thank you very much.