Lord Kanaloa Headlines Record Hokkaido Selection Sale
A week after a record breaking JRHA Select Sale at Northern Horse Park, the Hokkaido Selection Sale on July 18 in Shizunai kept the momentum going with a record shattering $27,741,158 gross, a 23.2% increase from 2016 and a stunning 81.4% clearance rate.
This was the fifth consecutive year the Selection Sale has seen growth and the second year in a row of significant gains across the board, which coincides with a fairly consistent 9 years of improvement.

Leading the charge this year was the JRA’s current leading Freshman Sire, Lord Kanaloa.
The 2013 JRA Horse of the Year has had an amazing start to his stallion career, having four individual winners from 13 starters to date.
Lord Kanaloa's results on the track and his progeny’s physicals drove the market on Tuesday with 12 of his second crop grossing $2,581,290, which was $862,998 more than any other stallion at the sale.
He had the sale topper, a half-brother to multiple graded stakes winner Hakusan Moon, who went $423,794 to Gaen Kogyo LLC, but not one of the 12 sold went for under $90,000.

Well established sires, Harbinger(GB) and Kinshasa no Kiseki(AUS) also sold well during the one day sale, grossing $1,718,291 from ten lots and $1,516,989 from 12 lots respectively.
Both stallions have been consistently showing favorable results with each crop they produce. Black Tide, the full brother to Deep Impact and who stands in the Hidaka region, grossed $1,512,173 for ten lots sold.

Since 2014 the Hokkaido Selection Sale, the Hidaka region’s premier yearling sale, has seen across the board increases in gross, clearance, averages and medians. The gross in 2014 was $16,525,069 and has broken that record every year since, with a $4,167,627 (22.3%) increase in 2016 and another $5,214,590 (23.2%) increase this year.
The averages and medians have steadily gone up but this year saw a significant increase, an average of $150,767 was up by 17.1% over last year, and a median of $134,843 was up by 33%. The clearance rate has risen steadily from 62.1% in 2014 to 73.5% in 2016, but the jump to 81.4% this year impressed everyone.

Bolstered each year by the many G1 successes of the Hidaka-bred horses such as Maurice, Kitasan Black, Gold Ship, Straight Girl, Deep Brillante, and Selection Sale grad Big Arthur, the Hokkaido Selection Sale is developing a brand of excellence all its own.

The atmosphere at the sales was comfortably energetic as horsemen from all over Japan bid on the 184 yearlings sold on Tuesday.
The Selection Sale, held in the heart of Japan’s thoroughbred breeding industry, is not only available to buyers in Japan but offers various services and amenities for clients from all over the world. English catalogs, transportation services while attending the sale, horse management assistance, and translators are available so you can buy horses with ease. Please don’t hesitate to contact us about attending the Selection Sale next year. We will gladly assist you in making your journey smooth and enjoyable.
(All $ amounts in US$, 1US$= 112.13 yen)