The Oka Sho (桜花賞) is a Japanese Grade 1 flat horse race in Japan. The race is restricted to three-year-old Thoroughbred fillies and is run over a distance of 1,600 metres at Hanshin Racecourse in Takarazuka, Hyōgo. Run in early April, it is the traditional start to the annual classic races for three-year-olds in Japan.
2021 Oka Sho winner Sodashi
Hanshin Racecourse is located in Takarazuka, Hyogo, Japan. It has a capacity of 139,000 and it is used for horse racing. The land was originally owned by Kawanishi Aircraft Company, which manufactured combat planes during World War II. After the World War II, GHQ ordered the company to stop manufacturing combat planes, which ended in closing the factory. In 1949, Keihanshin Keiba K.K. built the Hanshin Racecourse. The racecourse was transferred to Japan Racing Association in 1955. A major reconstruction was completed in 1991, and another in 2006.
Hanshin Racecourse
Aerial Photograph of the Hanshin Racecourse in 2012 by the National Land Image Information (Color Aerial Photographs)