Tall Poppy (Japanese: トールポピー, foaled 30 January 2005, died 22 June 2012) was a Japanese Thoroughbred racehorse and broodmare. In 2007 she took the JRA Award for Best Two-Year-Old Filly after winning two of her four races including the Hanshin Juvenile Fillies. In the following year she ran second in the Tulip Sho before recording her biggest win in the Yushun Himba. She finished unplaced in seven subsequent and was retired from racing in 2010. She made no impact as a dam of winners.
| Tall Poppy[1] | |
|---|---|
 Tall Poppy in April 2008 | |
| Breed | Thoroughbred |
| Sire | Jungle Pocket[1] |
| Grandsire | Tony Bin[1] |
| Dam | Admire Sunday[1] |
| Damsire | Sunday Silence[1] |
| Sex | Mare[1] |
| Foaled | 30 January 2005[1] |
| Died | 22 June 2012 (aged 7) |
| Country | Japan[1] |
| Colour | Bay[1] |
| Breeder | Northern Farm[1] |
| Owner | U Carrot Farm |
| Trainer | Katsuhiko Sumii |
| Record | 14: 3-3-0 |
| Earnings | 217,992,000 JPY[1] |
| Major wins | |
| Hanshin Juvenile Fillies (2007) Yushun Himba (2008) | |
| Awards | |
| JRA Award for Best Two-Year-Old Filly (2007) | |
| Last updated on 26 March 2024 | |
Background edit
Tall Poppy is a bay mare with a large white star bred in Hokkaido by Northern Farm. During her racing career she carried the green, white and red colours of U Carrot Farm and was trained by Katsuhiko Sumii.
She was from the third crop of foals sired by Jungle Pocket who won the Tokyo Yushun and the Japan Cup in 2001. He went on to become a very successful breeding stallion whose other foals included Jaguar Mail (Tenno Sho).[2]
Tall Poppys's dam Admire Sunday showed high class form, winning three race and finishing second in the Hanshin Himba Stakes.[3] As a broodmare she also produced Tall Poppy's full sister Aventura who won the Shuka Sho in 2011. She was a granddaughter of the undefeated French mare Madelia.[4]
Racing career edit
2007: two-year-old season edit
Tall Poppy began her racing career on 8 July at Hanshin Racecourse in a contest for previously unraced juveniles over 1800 metres in which she finished second to Earnestly, a colt who went on to win several major races including the Takarazuka Kinen. After a break of over three months she returned to the track in October for a maiden race at Kyoto Racecourse and recorded her first victory as she narrowly prevailed from the colt Shining Day. On 11 November at the same track, the filly ran second to the colt Yamanin Kingly (later to win the Sapporo Kinen) in the Kigiku Sho.[5]
At Hanshin on 2 December Tall Poppy raced against all-female competition for the first time when she contested the Hanshin Juvenile Fillies. Ridden by Kenichi Ikezoe, she started the 5.6/1 third favourite behind Odile and Aim At Vip (first and second in the Fantasy Stakes) in an eighteen-runner field. After turning into the straight in eighth place she produced a strong late run to win by a neck and half a length from Reve d'Amour and Aim At Vip.[6][7]
In the official Japanese rankings for 2007, Tall Poppy was rated the best juvenile filly, one pound ahead of Reve d'Amour and four pounds behind the top-rated colt Goshawk Ken.[8] In January 2008 at the JRA Awards for 2007 Tall Poppy took the JRA Award for Best Two-Year-Old Filly.[9]
2008: three-year-old season edit
On 8 March at Hanshin, Tall Poppy made her first appearance as a three-year-old in the 1600 metre Tulip Sho (a trial race for the Oka Sho) and finished a close second to Air Pascale. In the Oka Sho over the same course and distance five weeks later she started joint-favourite with the Daily Hai Queen Cup winner Little Amapola in a seventeen-runner field. The race resulted in a "blanket finish" which saw the outsider Reginetta narrowly prevailing from F T Maia and So Magic, and although Tall Poppy came home eighth she was only two and a half lengths behind the winner.[10]
The 69th running of the Yushun Himba over 2400 metres at Tokyo Racecourse on 25 May attracted a field of eighteen, and Tall Poppy was made the 8.7/1 fourth choice in the betting behind Little Amapola, Red Agate (Flora Stakes) and So Magic. The other runners included Black Emblem (Flower Cup), Reginetta, Odile, F T Maia, Air Pascale and Meine Ratsel (Fillies' Revue). After racing in mid division Tall Poppy made a strong run up the inside in the straight and got up in the final strides to win by a head from F T Maia.[11] An enquiry was held into possible interference caused by Tall Poppy as she made her challenge but after 30 minutes of deliberation the judges left the result unchanged.[12]
After a break of almost four months Tall Poppy returned in the Rose Stakes over 1800 metres at Hanshin in September and finished sixth behind Meiner Ratsel. In the Shuka Sho over 2000 metres at Kyoto saw Tall Poppy start the 2.6/1 favourite but come home tenth of the eighteen runners behind Black Emblem. This race resulted in another bunched finish with less than six lengths covering the first sixteen to cross the line and Tall Poppy was only three and a quarter lengths behind the winner.[13]
2009 & 2010: four & five-year-old seasons edit
Tall Poppy began her third campaign by running unplaced behind Kiss To Heaven in the Nakayama Himba Stakes over 1800 metres at Nakayama Racecourse on 15 March. She was then off the track for seven months before returning in autumn. She failed to recapture her best form as she finished unplaced in the Fuchu Himba Stakes, the Turquoise Stakes and the Aichi Hai.[5]
Tall Poppy remained in training as a five-year-old but made only one appearance, finishing seventeenth of the eighteen runners in the Hanshin Himba Stakes on 10 April.[14] She was subsequently retired from racing the following day.[15]
Breeding record edit
After her retirement from racing, Tall Poppy became a broodmare at Northern Farm, but produced only two recorded foals before her passing:[16]
- Oriental Poppy, a bay filly, foaled in 2011, sired by King Kamehameha. Failed to win in four races.
- unnamed bay filly, 2012, by King Kamehameha.
On 22 June 2012, Tall Poppy passed away at Northern Farm due to volvulus.[17][18]
Pedigree edit
| Sire Jungle Pocket (JPN) 1998 |
Tony Bin (IRE) 1983 |
Kampala (GB) | Kalamoun |
|---|---|---|---|
| State Pension | |||
| Severn Bridge (GB) | Hornbeam | ||
| Priddy Fair | |||
| Dance Charmer (USA) 1990 |
Nureyev | Northern Dancer (CAN) | |
| Special | |||
| Skilful Joy | Nodouble | ||
| Skilful Miss | |||
| Dam Admire Sunday (JPN) 1995 |
Sunday Silence (USA) 1986 |
Halo | Hail To Reason |
| Cosmah | |||
| Wishing Well | Understanding | ||
| Mountain Flower | |||
| Moon Indigo (USA) 1986 |
El Gran Senor | Northern Dancer (CAN) | |
| Sex Appeal | |||
| Madelia (FR) | Caro (IRE) | ||
| Moonmadness (USA) (Family 1-p)[4] |
- Tall Poppy was inbred 4 × 4 to Northern Dancer, meaning that this stallion appears twice in the fourth generation of her pedigree.
References edit
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k "Tall Poppy(JPN)". JBIS Search. Retrieved 2024-03-26.
- ^ "Stallion Reports Jungle Pocket". JBIS.
- ^ "Race Records:Lifetime Starts Admire Sunday(JPN)". JBIS.
- ^ a b "Hilarity – Family 1-p". Thoroughbred Bloodlines. Retrieved 2014-06-25.
- ^ a b "Race Records:Lifetime Starts Tall Poppy". JBIS.
- ^ "Hanshin Juvenile Fillies result". Racing Post. 2 December 2007.
- ^ "Tall Poppy wins after late surge". Japan Times. December 3, 2007.
- ^ "2007 Thoroughbred Rankings". Horse Racing in Japan.
- ^ "JRA Award Winners Named". The Blood-Horse. 30 January 2018.
- ^ "Oka Sho result". Racing Post. 13 April 2008.
- ^ "Yushun Himba result". Racing Post. 25 May 2008.
- ^ "Gutsy showing leads Tall Poppy to win in 69th running of the Oaks". Japan Times. 25 May 2008.
- ^ "Shuka Sho result". Racing Post. 19 October 2008.
- ^ "Hanshin Himba Stakes result". Racing Post. 10 April 2010.
- ^ "GI・2勝馬トールポピーが登録抹消". netkeiba (in Japanese). 2010-04-12. Retrieved 2024-03-26.
- ^ "Family:Dam Information Tall Poppy". JBIS.
- ^ "０８年オークス馬トールポピーが死ぬ". Sanspo! (in Japanese). Sankei Shimbun. 2012-06-25. Archived from the original on 2012-06-28. Retrieved 2024-03-26.
- ^ "トールポピー死亡". ラジオNIKKEI (in Japanese). 2012-06-26. Retrieved 2024-03-26.
- ^ "Five-generation Pedigree Table". JBIS Search. Retrieved 2024-03-26.
- ^ "PEDIGREE (5-GEN)". netkeiba. Retrieved 2024-03-26.