The first race in Korea open to overseas-trained horses was the SBS Goodwill Cup in 2013 which featured horses from Japan and was won by Japan’s Tosen Archer. In 2014, the Goodwill Cup became the Asia Cup Challenge and included horses from Singapore, who provided the winner in the shape of El Padrino.
The race would be run again as the Asia Challenge Cup in 2015 when the locally trained Choegang Schiller stopped El Padrino from completing a double, before evolving into the Korea Sprint in 2016 when the Korea Cup was also added. Initially local Group 1 races, the Korea Cup (1800m) and Korea Sprint (1200m) were first run as International Group 3 races in 2022 when they returned to the program for the first time following a two-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The 6th editions of the Korea Cup and Korea Sprint were held at Seoul Racecourse on 10 September 2023. They presented an enticing challenge for international competitors, with an exciting increase in prizemoney on offer for each race - up60% to KRW 1,600,000,000 (USD 1,280,000) for the Korea Cup and up 40% to KRW1,400,000,000 (USD 1,120,000) for the Korea Sprint.
Both features were taken by Japanese horses this year, with Remake winning the Korea Sprint followed by Crown Pride triumphing in the Korea Cup.
Please see the KRA website for more information.
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