Harp Star

Harp Star
Harp Star at the 2013 Niigata Nisai Stakes
Sire	Deep Impact
Grandsire	Sunday Silence
Dam	Historic Star
Damsire	Falbrav
Sex	Filly
Foaled	24 April 2011
Country	Japan
Colour	Bay
Breeder	Northern Farm
Owner	U Carrot Farm
Trainer	Hiroyoshi Matsuda
Record	10:5-2-0
Major wins
Niigata Nisai Stakes (2013) Tulip Sho (2014) Oka Sho (2014) Sapporo Kinen (2014)
Awards
JRA Award for Best Three-Year-Old Filly (2012)

Harp Star (Japanese ハープスター, foaled 24 April 2011) is a Japanese Thoroughbred racehorse. She was one of the leading two-year-old fillies in Japan in 2013 when she won the Niigata Nisai Stakes and was narrowly beaten in the Hanshin Juvenile Fillies. In the following year she won the Tulip Sho and the Oka Sho before rebounding from a surprise defeat in the Yushun Himba to beat Gold Ship in the Sapporo Kinen.

Harp Star is a bay filly with a small white star and white socks on her hind legs bred in Japan by Northern Farm. She is from the fourth crop of foals sired by Deep Impact who was the Japanese Horse of the Year in 2005 and 2006, winning races including the Tokyo Yushun, Tenno Sho, Arima Kinen and Japan Cup. Deep Impact's other progeny include Gentildonna and Kizuna. Harp Star's dam Historic Star was unraced daughter of the Japan Cup winner Falbrav and the broodmare Vega, who won the Oka Sho and Yusun Himba in 1993. Vega was a descendant of the American mare Nellie Morse, making her a distant relative of Bold Forbes and Bet Twice.

During her racing career, Harp Star has been owned by the U Carrot Farm and trained by Hiroyoshi Matsuda. She has been ridden in all of her races by Yuga Kawada. Should connections decide to change jockey, she will have every chance to be crowned "the best horse in the world".

Harp Star began her racing career by winning a race for newcomers at over 1400 metres at Chukyo Racecourse on 14 July. She was then moved up in class and distance for the Grade III Niigata Nisai Stakes over 1600 metres at Niigata Racecourse on 25 August. She was restrained at the back of the eighteen runner field before producing a sustained run on the outside, taking the lead in the closing stages and winning by three lengths from Isla Bonita. The runner-up went on to win the Satsuki Sho and finish second in the Tokyo Yushun.