CORRECTED: LEAD: Horse racing: Zenno Rob Roy wins 3rd straight G-1 race at Arima Kinen

Asian Economic News, Dec 29, 2004

FUNABASHI, Japan, Dec. 26 Kyodo

No. 1 favorite Zenno Rob Roy emerged victorious after staging a head-to-head duel with Tap Dance City down the wire, winning his third crown in as many Grade One races at the Arima Kinen on Sunday.

Zenno Rob Roy, winner of last month's Japan Cup and the autumn Tenno-sho in October, clocked a race record 2 minutes, 29.5 seconds at Nakayama Racecourse in Chiba Prefecture to give French jockey Olivier Peslier an unprecedented third straight Arima Kinen title.

Peslier won the 2002 and 2003 Arima Kinen aboard Symboli Kris S.

U.S.-bred Tap Dance City built a comfortable three-length lead in the 2,500-meter turf race which featured 15 horses including Kikka-sho winner Delta Blues, only to have Zenno Rob Roy rush to the lead in the final 100 meters and coast to a half-length victory.

Tap Dance City was second, and Silk Famous was third another 1-1/2 length behind. Delta Blues was fifth.

''He made a good start to the race and in the last 200 meters I fought with him,'' Peslier said of the duel between his 4-year-old colt and 7-year-old Tap Dance City.

''He (Tap Dance City) fought well but mine was a little bit better. This is a strong horse. It feels wonderful to win three consecutive years. That's three Arima and three Arc de Triomphes (1996-1998) in France for me. I'm very happy to have won in both countries,'' he said.

Zenno Rob Roy, who paid out 200 yen on a 100-yen wager, earned 180 million yen in prize money after his fifth major victory and received another 200 million yen bonus for winning three Grade One races in a row. It was the 12th time he won a race as the top favorite.

Zenno Rob Roy is the second horse to be awarded the 200 million bonus after T.M. Opera O in 2000, the year the bonus system was established for the winner of the three fall Grade One races - the Tenno-sho, Japan Cup and Arima Kinen.

Four Japanese jockeys -- Santa Takamatsu (1960-1961), Yuji Nohira (1969-1970), Yukio Okabe (1984-1985) and Hitoshi Matoba (1989-1999) -- have won the Arima Kinen for two straight years, but Peslier is the first to win it for a third straight year.