Tap Dance City

Tap Dance City won two of his nine races a three-year-old in 2000, but failed to win in six races in 2001. He emerged as a top-class performer in 2002 when he won the Grade 3 Asahi Challenge Cup. In December 2002, as an 85/1 outsider, he produced his best performance up to that point when he finished second to Symboli Kris S in the Grade 1 Arima Kinen at Nakayama Racecourse.[3]

Tap Dance City began his six-year-old season by winning a handicap race at Tokyo Racecourse and then won the Grade 2 Kinko Sho at Chukyo Racecourse in May. In June he finished third to Hishi Miracle in the Takarazuka Kinen, with the unplaced horses including Neo Universe, Symboli Kris S and Agnes Digital. On his return from the summer break, Tap Dance City won the Grade 2 Kyoto Daishoten, beating Hishi Miracle by one and a quarter lengths after leading from the start.[4]

On 30 November 2003, Tap Dance City, ridden by Tetsuzo Sato, started at odds of 12.8/1 for the 22nd running of the Japan Cup at Tokyo. Apart from the Japanese contenders such as Symboli Kris S and Neo Universe, the race attracted international challengers including Islington from England, Johar from the United States and Fields of Omagh from Australia. Tap Dance City went into the lead from the start and opened up a seven length advantage with five furlongs left to run. He was never challenged and won by a record margin of nine lengths from the Kikuka Sho winner That's The Plenty, with Symboli Kris S and Neo Universe in third and fourth places.[5][6]

In 2004, Tap Dance City won the Kinko Sho for a second time before starting 5/2 favourite for the Takarazuka Kinen at Hanshin Racecourse on 27 June. Sato tracked the leaders before sending the seven-year-old into the lead half a mile from the finish. Tap Dance City won by two lengths and three quarters of a length from Silk Famous and Lincoln, with Zenno Rob Roy taking fourth ahead of That's The Plenty.[7] In autumn, Tap Dance City was sent to Europe to contest the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe at Longchamp Racecourse on 3 October. Starting at odds of 10/1 he disputed the lead until the turn into the straight, but faded in the closing stages and finished seventeenth of the nineteen runners behind Bago. Tap Dance City returned to Japan, and in December he finished second in the Arima Kinen, beaten half a length by Zenno Rob Roy, with Delta Blues, Hishi Miracle and Heart's Cry among the unplaced finishers.

As an eight-year-old, Tap Dance City won the Kinko Sho for a third time[8] but finished unplaced in his remaining four races.