The Queen Elizabeth II Commemorative Cup is an International Grade 1

Graded stakes race

A graded stakes race is a term applied since 1973 by the American Graded Stakes Committee of the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association to thoroughbred horse races in the United States and Canada to describe races that derive their name from the stake, or entry fee, owners must pay...

 flat

Flat racing

Flat racing is a form of Thoroughbred horse racing which is run over a level track at a predetermined distance. It differs from steeplechase racing which is run over hurdles...

 horse race

Horse racing

Horse racing is an equestrian sport that has a long history. Archaeological records indicate that horse racing occurred in ancient Babylon, Syria, and Egypt. Both chariot and mounted horse racing were events in the ancient Greek Olympics by 648 BC...

 in Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

 for three-year-old and above thoroughbred

Thoroughbred

The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word thoroughbred is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed...

 fillies

Filly

A filly is a young female horse too young to be called a mare. There are several specific definitions in use.*In most cases filly is a female horse under the age of four years old....

 and mare

Mare (horse)

A mare is an adult female horse or other equine.In most cases, a mare is a female horse over the age of three, and a filly is a female horse age three and younger. However, in Thoroughbred horse racing, a mare is defined as a female horse more than four years old; in harness racing a mare is a...

s run over a distance of 2,200 metres (approximately 1 mile 3 furlongs) on the turf at Kyoto Racecourse

Kyoto Racecourse

is located in Fushimi-ku, Kyoto, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan. It is used for horse racing. It has a capacity of 120,000. It was built in 1999. It has 28,000 seats.-Physical attributes:Kyoto Race Course has two turf courses, a dirt course, and a jump course....

 in November.

The race was first run in 1976 over a distance of 2,400 metres (1 mile 4 furlongs). It was originally for three-year-old fillies only and was the third leg of the Japanese Fillies' Triple Crown. In 1996, it was opened to older female horses and was reduced to its present distance. That same year the Shuka Sho

Shūka Sho

The is a Grade 1 flat horse race in Japan for three-year-old thoroughbred fillies run over a distance of 2,000 metres at the Kyoto Racecourse, Fushimi-ku, Kyoto, Kyoto Prefecture in October....

 was established and became the third leg of the Fillies' Triple Crown.

It is only one of the two Grade 1 races for older female horses in Japan.

Winners since 1996

Year	Winner	Age	Jockey	Trainer	Owner	Time
1996	Dance Partner	4	Hirofumi Shii	Toshiaki Shirai	Katsumi Yoshida	2:14.3
1997	Erimo Chic	4	Hitoshi Matoba	Yoshio Oki	Shinichi Yamamoto	2:12.5
1998	Mejiro Dober	4	Yutaka Yoshida	Yokichi Okubo	Mejiro Shoji	2:12.8
1999	Mejiro Dober	5	Yutaka Yoshida	Yokichi Okubo	Mejiro Shoji	2:13.5
2000	Phalaenopsis	5	Mikio Matsunaga	Mitsumasa Hamada	North Hills Management Co Ltd	2:12.8
2001	To the Victory	5	Yutaka Take Yutaka Take is a Japanese jockey who is a multiple champion in his homeland and won the Japan Cup in 1999 on the horse Special Week...	Yasuo Ikee	Makoto Kaneko Makoto Kaneko is the President, CEO and Representative Director of Zuken Inc., a public listed multinational corporation in the Tokyo Stock Exchange.Makoto Kaneko is better known as a prominent horse owner in Japan...	2:11.2
2002	Fine Motion	3	Yutaka Take Yutaka Take is a Japanese jockey who is a multiple champion in his homeland and won the Japan Cup in 1999 on the horse Special Week...	Yuji Ito	Tatsuo Fushikida	2:13.2
2003	Admire Groove	3	Yutaka Take Yutaka Take is a Japanese jockey who is a multiple champion in his homeland and won the Japan Cup in 1999 on the horse Special Week...	Mitsuru Hashida	Riichi Kondo	2:11.8
2004	Admire Groove	4	Yutaka Take Yutaka Take is a Japanese jockey who is a multiple champion in his homeland and won the Japan Cup in 1999 on the horse Special Week...	Mitsuru Hashida	Riichi Kondo	2:13.6
2005	Sweep Tosho	4	Kenichi Ikezoe	Akio Tsurudome	Tosho Sangyo	2:12.5
2006	Fusaichi Pandore *	3	Yuichi Fukunaga	Toshiaki Shirai	Fusao Sekiguchi Fusao Sekiguchi is a businessman and Thoroughbred horse racing enthusiast. He is the Chairman of the Board and majority shareholder of Venture Safe Net, Inc of Tokyo....	2:11.6
2007	Daiwa Scarlet Daiwa Scarlet is a Japanese racehorse which won the 2007 Oka Sho, Shūka Sho, Queen Elizabeth II Commemorative Cup and the 2008 Arima Kinen....	3	Katsumi Ando	Kunihide Matsuda	Keizo Oshiro	2:11.9
2008	Little Amapola	3	Christophe Lemaire Christophe Lemaire Christophe Patrice Lemaire is a French-born jockey. He takes his middle name from his father, who made a name for himself in the world of French handicap racing.In 1999 he obtained the licence required for a French jockey, and began racing...	Hiroyuki Nagahama Hiroyuki Nagahama is a Japanese politician of the Democratic Party of Japan , a member of the House of Councillors in the Diet . A native of Tokyo and graduate of Waseda University, he was elected to the House of Representatives for the first time in 1993 as a member of Morihiro Hosokawa's Japan New Party...	Shadai Racehorse Co	2:12.1
2009	Queen Spumante	5	Hiroyasu Tanaka	Shigeyuki Kojima	Green Farm	2:13.6
2010	Snow Fairy Snow Fairy Snow Fairy is a Thoroughbred racehorse trained by Ed Dunlop. She won four Group 1 races in 2010, including the Epsom Oaks, Irish Oaks, Queen Elizabeth II Commemorative Cup and Hong Kong Cup.- references :**...	3	Ryan Moore	Ed Dunlop	Anamoine Ltd	2:12.5
2011	Snow Fairy	4	Ryan Moore	Ed Dunlop	Anamoine Ltd	2:11.6

* Kawakami Princess finished first in 2006 but was demoted to 12th place following a Stewards' Inquiry.

External links

• Horse Racing in Japan