Of the horses currently being mentioned as possible Japanese runners at this year’s Breeders’ Cup, Ask Ikigomi is the one whose physique impresses me most. Ask Ikigomi (Lord Kanaloa × Impede(Bated Breath)) It isn’t even a close call. Of the names being discussed right now, he clearly looks the best horse to me. The coordination between his forehand and hindquarters, the short and strong back, and the size of his hindquarters all stand out. His back and loin are compact, which should make it easy for him to gather his body and change gears quickly during a race. His hindquarters look capable of snapping into action with both speed and force. He has the pelvic length, the close connection to the loin and the muscle through the croup to handle both acceleration and sustained speed. He looks extremely versatile. With him, if he fails to show anything close to his ability, I’d be looking at the preparation or the people around him rather than the horse. Even if he never wins a G1, I still think he deserves a place at stud. And this year’s three-year-old crop is genuinely exceptional. There are several horses in the generation that I rate even more highly than him. It’s an incredible crop.

She was gone two weeks before the Kikuka Sho. Going to Sky brought the victory home to the farm she helped build. 2026 Kikuka Sho (3YO G1 / Kyoto / 3000m) 🥇Going to Sky (Contrail × Goin to the Window (Tapit)) On 25 October 2026, he became the farm's first Classic-winning colt, 81 years after its founding. It was also Chiyoda's first Classic victory since Smile Tomorrow won the Japanese Oaks in 2002. Masako's part in that story began in 1945. Her father, Takeshi Iida, acquired a farm in what was then Chiyoda Village in Chiba Prefecture. His 19-year-old daughter moved in and took on the daily work of running it. She was the kind of person who could tell a petrol-station attendant, "No need to put in enough to get me all the way to heaven." When she later chose land in Hokkaido, she thought about the people who would work there and the children they would raise. Having schools nearby mattered. In 1966, Chiyoda opened its main farm in Shizunai on the land she had selected. That was where Going to Sky was born in 2023. By then, Chiyoda had grown into one of Japan's major breeding farms, with a history of notable winners and near misses. In 1973, Ichifuji Isami had finished fourth in the Satsuki Sho, second in the Japanese Derby and third in the Kikuka Sho. Two Chiyoda-bred fillies won the Queen Elizabeth II Cup during its years as the final leg of the fillies' Triple Crown, when only three-year-old fillies could enter. Although part of that series, the race was not a Classic. Talented Girl, foaled in 1984, was one of those winners, ending the Triple Crown bid of Max Beauty, who had won the Oka Sho and Japanese Oaks. Smile Tomorrow finally gave Chiyoda its first Classic win in the 2002 Japanese Oaks. Ushba Tesoro added a Dubai World Cup victory in 2023. A Classic-winning colt, however, was still missing from the farm's history. Going to Sky was a son of Contrail and the Tapit mare Goin to the Window. Field Racing bought him for ¥33 million at the Select Sale and placed him with young trainer Yuki Uehara. The relatively young owner behind Field Racing had been drawn to racing by Dance in the Dark's Kikuka Sho victory. Winning the Kikuka Sho was the dream he had written about in his X profile. Going to Sky won the Aoba Sho, finished fourth in the Japanese Derby and returned in autumn with a sixth-place finish in the St Lite Kinen. With Yutaka Take aboard, he then won the Kikuka Sho, fulfilling his owner's dream and ending Chiyoda's 24-year wait for another Classic. Masako Iida died on 11 October 2026, aged 99, just two weeks before the Kikuka Sho. She had helped run Chiyoda at 19. She had chosen the land where Going to Sky would one day be born. His owner had dreamed of winning the Kikuka Sho. His breeder had waited 81 years for a Classic-winning colt. On 25 October, Going to Sky seemed to find his own way of answering those hopes. The woman who had chosen his birthplace was no longer there to see it. But the farm she had helped build was.