【Surge in Female Horse Racing Fans!】 New Novel 'Run, Unmarked Horse' (by Naoko Tanigawa) Depicts the Battle Between a 100-Yen Horse and a 100-Million-Yen Thoroughbred

Kawade Shobo Shinsha has published 'Run, Unmarked Horse,' the debut horse racing novel by Naoko Tanigawa, a Bungei Prize-winning author and veteran horse racing writer, on May 27, 2026. In the world of horse racing, experts mark horses with symbols like ◎, ○, ▲, and △. However, the horse 'Treasury' had no marks at all. The story follows three individuals with emotional scars and their horse, Treasury, set against the backdrop of the Japanese horse racing scene from 2019 to 2024, a period that saw dramatic changes due to the pandemic. With the rise of online betting, simulation games, and the 'oshi-katsu' (fandom) culture, the industry is booming. Notably, jockey Seina Imamura recently achieved the first G1 victory for a female jockey in JRA history. Praised by legends like Yutaka Take and Junko Hosoe, the novel depicts a clash between an underdog horse and a 100-million-yen thoroughbred. It serves as both a heartwarming entertainment piece and an excellent introduction to the world of horse racing.