ARCADIA, CA -- Santa Anita Park will host the 15th annual Tokyo City Cup, in conjunction with TCK Ohi Racetrack, on Saturday, March 27.  The annual spring event celebrates a long partnership between two of the premier tracks in the world with a wide variety of cultural exhibitions and travel information on Japan in addition to the $100,000 Grade III Tokyo City Cup horse race, which brings together some of the top thoroughbreds in the nation.

The Tokyo City Cup, won last year by Stream Cat, is the sole graded stakes race named for a major city outside of the United States.  Free admission coupons are available by visiting www.tokyocitycup.com.  The event will feature free Tokyo City Cup T-shirts that will be given to the first 1000 patrons (coupon available on the web site and select publications).  The web site also provides more information about the specific event schedule.  Gates open at Santa Anita at 10:30 a.m., with first post at 12:30 p.m.

“We are very proud of our long association with TCK Ohi Racetrack,” said Ron Charles, Santa Anita President.  “We look forward to this event each year as it presents the exciting and colorful Japanese culture to the local communities in our area as well as providing wonderful cultural exchange opportunities.”

The Japan Family Day, held in conjunction with the Tokyo City Cup, features cultural exhibitions that showcase such Japanese displays as Sado (tea ceremony), Kado (flower arranging), Shodo (calligraphy), Origami (paper folding), Koto (Japanese harp), Min-yo (Japanese ｆolk music), Karate(Japanese martial arts) , Sumo (Japanese style of wrestling), AYANO (Japanese dance performance) and Wadaiko (special Japanese drum performance). In celebration of the 15th anniversary, Kacchu-Keiba (Horse Race by Armed Samurai Warriors) will be held on the main race course. Also, Visit Japan provides tourism information to attending patrons, introducing Japan as an attractive travel destination.  And, there will be various Japanese food booths available (Sushi, Curry, Okonomiyaki (Japanese-style Pancake), Takoyaki (Japanese octopus dumplings), Green Tea, a kids area with pony rides and visitors can take pictures with the world-famous Samurai warriors, who will be in traditional gear and armor at the Soma Nomaoi booth. .

Santa Anita Park (http://www.santaanita.com) is located in Arcadia, California, a residential community 14 miles northeast of downtown Los Angeles.  Santa Anita Park opens each year on December 26, with daily racing continuing through late April, from Wednesday through Sunday.  For more information, please visit at www.tokyocitycup.com.

Media Contact
Yoshio Sodeyama
U.S. Equine, Inc.
(805) 449-8726
info@tokyocitycup.com