Kurofune (horse)

Kurofune
Kurofune in May 2001
Sire	French Deputy
Grandsire	Deputy Minister
Dam	Blue Avenue
Damsire	Classic Go Go
Sex	Stallion
Foaled	31 March 1998[1]
Died	17 January 2021 (aged 22)
Country	United States
Colour	Grey
Breeder	Nicholas M. Lotz
Owner	Makoto Kaneko
Trainer	Kunihide Matsuda
Record	10: 6-1-2
Earnings	¥370,235,000
Major wins
Mainichi Hai (2001) NHK Mile Cup (2001) Musashino Stakes (2001) Japan Cup Dirt (2001)
Awards
JRA Award for Best Dirt Horse

Kurofune (Japanese クロフネ, 31 March 1998 - 17 January 2021) was an American-bred, Japanese-trained Thoroughbred racehorse and sire who won Grade 1 races on both turf and dirt. He showed promising form as a juvenile in 2000 when he won two of four races and ran third in a very strong edition of the Radio Tampa Hai Sansai Stakes. In the following year he took the Mainichi Hai and the NHK Mile Cup in spring on turf before being switched to dirt racing in late autumn and winning the Musashino Stakes and the Japan Cup Dirt. He won six of his ten races, four of them in track record times, before his track career was ended by injury. After his retirement from racing he became a very successful breeding stallion.