Japan yesterday mourned the death of celebrated no-hoper racehorse Haru-urara, whose record of losing in all of her 113 career appearances captured the hearts of millions of struggling citizens.
The hapless mare inspired generations of Japanese battling to stay afloat in the throes of economic doldrums from her debut in 1998 to her final race in 2004.
Her ill-fated performances attracted thousands of fans to the racecourse and inspired T-shirts, good-luck charms, postage stamps and a movie in her name.
Photo: AFP
Haru-urara, whose name means gentle spring, died at the age of 29 on Tuesday at her retirement ranch in a seaside town outside Tokyo, the Retired Horse Association said on its Web site.
The news brought an outpouring of grief from fans moved by the chestnut mare’s enduring persistence.
“You never won an official race, but you showed us that you can also win by being loved,” one person wrote on X.
Haru-urara captured the nation’s attention when the public relations office of the nearly bankrupt Kochi Racecourse launched a media campaign with her as its star.
The daily attendance at the course averaged just 1,600 spectators in the year to March 2003, but it shot up to 5,000 when the mare marked her 100th defeat. About 8,000 fans watched her 101st.
As Haru-urara stole the hearts of millions in her trademark pink hood, merchandizers were quick to jump on the bandwagon.
A good-luck charm sold at the racecourse was said to contain a thread of hair from the mare’s tail.
Her performances caught the eye of then-Japanese prime minister Junichiro Koizumi, who said: “Isn’t it good that she gets support whether she wins or loses?”
However, despite her impressive run of losses, Haru-urara still fell short of the Japanese record of 161 straight races without a win set by Hakuhou Queen in 1992.
The Kansas City Chiefs wrapped up a brief visit to Brazil on Friday with a season-opening loss to the Los Angeles Chargers, but despite the defeat, the team outshone their divisional rivals in the fight for the hearts and minds of Brazilian fans. In Sao Paulo for just the second-ever NFL game in the city, Chiefs players — especially quarterback Patrick Mahomes and tight end Travis Kelce — were treated as major celebrities throughout their stay, turning Corinthians Arena into a scene reminiscent of the Chiefs’ Arrowhead Stadium. Before kickoff, crowds of fans gathered around the Chiefs’ tunnel, eager to catch a
New Zealand stayed firm at their Eden Park fortress to claim an attritional 24-17 win over South Africa in a heavyweight clash between the world’s top two rugby sides yesterday. Under pressure after conceding a first-ever defeat on Argentine soil against the Pumas two weeks ago, the All Blacks responded with a performance of grit and discipline to stretch their unbeaten run at their Auckland stronghold to 51 matches. Two well-taken tries by Emoni Narawa and Will Jordan set up a 14-3 lead at halftime before Quinn Tupaea grabbed a third five-pointer for the hosts 13 minutes from time. Well-held for most of
The Wallabies trusted their instincts to keep pushing for a late try instead of a potential equalizing penalty goal late in their Rugby Championship Test match yesterday against Argentina, with prop Angus Bell scoring the clinching try in the sixth minute of added time to give Australia a comeback 28-24 win. The Wallabies were awarded three kickable penalties after the 80th minute, but kept pushing in search of the match-winning try, which was finally delivered by an unlikely hero in reserve prop Bell. “It’s just relieving,” Bell said. “It’s just awesome we could get the win in the end; not go for
RETURN TO FORM: Osaka extended her deepest run in a Grand Slam since returning to tennis after giving birth, putting her in a position to lift the trophy for a third time Reigning champion Jannik Sinner on Wednesday marched into the US Open quarter-finals as Amanda Anisimova avenged her Wimbledon thrashing by Iga Swiatek to set up a last-four clash with Naomi Osaka. World No. 1 Sinner swept aside 10th seed Lorenzo Musetti 6-1, 6-4, 6-2 in the first all-Italian men’s quarter-final in Grand Slam history. “It was a great performance, very solid. I started the match very well,” said Sinner, who faces Canadian 25th seed Felix Auger-Aliassime in the semi-finals today. Auger-Aliassime has won two of three previous meetings, but Sinner thrashed him for the loss of just two games in Cincinnati last month. “Every
RSS