IRL:Agnes Tachyon

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Spoilers ahead! This page contains real life information that may spoil any story or events related to the character. Read at your own discretion!

Agnes Tachyon
アグネスタキオン
Main
Agnes Tachyon and jockey Hiroshi Kawachi, winning the 2001 Satsuki Sho
Silks
Romaji	Agunesu Takion
Foaled	April 13, 1998
Died	June 22, 2009
Sire	Sunday Silence
Dam	Agnes Flora
Sex	Stallion
Color	Chestnut
Trainer	Masayuki Nagahama
Race Record	4: 4-0-0
Earnings	222,082,000 JPY
Major wins
Radio Tampa Hai Sansai Stakes (2000) Yayoi Sho (2001) Satsuki Sho (2001)

Lightspeed Particle

Lightspeed Particle

2001 Satsuki Sho.
In just four races, this horse became a legend.
Appearing from another dimension,
it blazed through in a blink of an eye.
It left rivals in dispair,
dazzling spectators with particles moving at the speed of light.
The name of this horse is Agnes Tachyon.
- JRA CM "THE LEGEND" (2012)

Agnes Tachyon was a Japanese racehorse that was active from 2000 to 2001. He was one of the five horses from the "Strongest Generation" of Japanese Horseracing alongside Jungle Pocket, Manhattan Cafe, Kurofune, and Dantsu Flame. Due to his impressive ability and early retirement, Agnes Tachyon is nicknamed "The Phantom Triple Crown" horse where he retired after winning the Satsuki Sho in 2001, with Jungle Pocket winning the Japanese Derby and Manhattan Cafe winning the Kikuka Sho.

Name Origin

"Agnes" is his owner - Takao Watanabe's crown name, which comes from Agnes "Miling Kaneko" Chan (陳美齡, Chan Mei Ling), a Hong Kong singer in Japan. He chose "Agnes" as his crown name, as his daughters were fans of her. "Tachyon" comes from the hypothetical particle that always travels faster than light.

Racing career

2 years old season (2000)

Agnes Tachyon made his debut on December 2nd, 2000 at Hanshin Racecourse. He gained attention as the brother to 2000 Japanese Derby winner Agnes Flight, but wasn't the favorite due to his poor training times. Despite his inexperience, he clocked a 33-second final three furlongs, beating his rivals by three and a half lengths clear of runner-up Rebroadcast. The quality of the field became apparent in hindsight—Meisho Ramses finished third, while race favorite Born King could only manage fifth.

On December 23rd, Agnes Tachyon raced in the G3 Radio Tampa Hai Sansai Stakes at Hanshin Racecourse. This was the first race where he met his rivals Jungle Pocket and Kurofune, but the colt responded with a record-breaking performance that left the racing world buzzing. He didn't just win; he shattered the two-year-old 2,000-meter track record while defeating contemporaries that proved to be one of the finest juvenile crops in modern Japanese racing history.

What made the victory even more remarkable was the tactical audacity displayed. Reading the slow early pace, the colt launched his bid entering the third turn, an aggressive, some might say brazen, move that risked burning out before the finish. Yet he sustained the assault, drawing level at the top of the stretch and then pulling clear with authority. His final three furlongs in 34.1 seconds were the fastest of any runner, a stunning closing kick after forcing such demanding fractions. Winning by two and a half lengths over Jungle Pocket and Kurofune, who came in 2nd and 3rd respectively.

After the race, jockey Hiroshi Kawachi remarked, "I'm convinced this horse is of a different dimension." Trainer Nagahama, who had entered the race with a mix of hope and apprehension about how his horse would perform against Kurofune and Jungle Pocket, praised Agnes Tachyon’s performance, saying, "Compared to his older brother, the quality of his racing is superior." At the end of the year, Agnes Tachyon came in 2nd for Best 2-Year-Old Colt, behind the Asahi Hai Futurity Stakes winner Mejiro Bailey.

3 years old season (2001)

Trainer Masayuki Nagahama chose the Yayoi Sho as the first race of the year for Agnes Tachyon, believing that his horse "had the potential to win the Triple Crown". His entry caused stables withdraw their entries, unwilling to face what many considered a heavy favorite in the Classics. The field dwindled to just eight runners for a rained out Yayoi Sho, including Born King and Manhattan Cafe.

On a "heavy" rated track, Agnes Tachyon destroyed his rivals despite never changing leads throughout the race, winning by 5 lengths over runner-up Born King. An ailing Manhattan Cafe could manage only fourth. Jockey Kawachi commented after the race, "he would have shown a stronger race if the track was in condition... today's field was small, so it's not a good reference." Born King’s rider, Yutaka Take, added in jest, "He's just too strong... We'd need to make the classics a handicap race!"

Agnes Tachyon next race was the Satsuki Sho, and due to his stable mate Agnes Gold withdrawing due to injury, he was the overwhelming favorite going into the race with a 59.4% chance of winning. He met his rivals Jungle Pocket and Dantsu Flame, who were 2nd and 3rd favorites in the race. Running in fourth or fifth early, he swept to the front with casual authority, dispatching his rivals: Japan's finest three-year-olds. The odds of 1.3-to-1 told the story, this wasn't a race so much as a procession for Tachyon. Agnes Tachyon won comfortably, having won by 1 1/2 lengths over Dantsu Flame. After his victory, jockey Kawachi said "I'm relieved... at odds of 1.3 to 1, I was in a different position to his older brother (Agnes Flight)." He also remarked, "This wasn't his true performance", hinting that the colt still had more to offer.

Four starts, four dominant victories. The Triple Crown appeared not just possible but inevitable.

Then came May 2nd, and with it, the news that shattered dreams: digital flexor tendonitis in his left foreleg, forcing his withdrawal from the Japanese Derby. Trainer Nagahama, who had admitted after the Satsuki Sho win, "I'm happy, but I can't help worrying that he might end up like the injured Agnes Gold", saw those fears come true.

Retirement, Breeding Career & Death

He was sent to pasture at Shadai Farm, and after discussions with connections, it was announced on August 29th, 2001 that Agnes Tachyon retired from racing, with his retirement ceremony held at Hanshin Racecourse on September 30th, 2001. He stayed on the Shadai Farm and begin his breeding career. His first crop made their debut in 2005; he had good success with his progeny winning the Niigata Nisai Stakes and Kokura Nisai Stakes. In 2006, Agnes Tachyon had his first G1 winner with Logic winning the NHK Mile Cup, and in 2007 Daiwa Scarlet won the Oka Sho, the first of four G1 races she won en-route of becoming Agnes Tachyon's best progeny. After Sunday Silence passed away in 2002, Agnes Tachyon became the ace stallion of Shadai Stallion Station. He won the 2008 JRA Overall Leading Sire, becoming the first domestically bred horse to win the award since Kumohata in 1957.

In 2009, at the end of the breeding season, Shadai Stallion Station announced the death of Agnes Tachyon, due to acute heart failure. He died on June 22nd, 2009, at the age of 11. Agnes Tachyon's great success as a sire has kept his bloodline alive long after his death, with about 240 active JRA horses has his bloodline as of 2022. His sire line was succeeded by Deep Sky and Admire Aura after his death. Currently, his sire line was succeeded by Arctos, Admire Aura's foal.

Honors

• JRA Leading Freshman Sire (2005)
• JRA 2-Year-Old Leading Sire (2006, 2007)
• JRA Overall Leading Sire (2008)

Relationships

Relatives

• Sunday Silence - Father
• Daiwa Scarlet - Daughter

Race Records

Race data sourced from netkeiba.

Date	Racecourse	Race	Grade	Distance	Gate	Odds	Fav.	Fin.	Time	Margin	Jockey	Winner (Runner-Up)	Other Umamusume
2000/12/02	Hanshin	Three-Year-Old Newcomer	Maiden	T 2000m	4	5.8	3	1	2:04.3	-0.6	H.Kawachi	(Rebroadcast)
2000/12/23	Hanshin	Radio Tampa Hai Sansai Stakes	G3	T 2000m	2	4.5	2	1	2:00.8	-0.4	H.Kawachi	(Jungle Pocket)	Jungle Pocket
2001/03/04	Nakayama	Yayoi Sho	G2	T 2000m	1	1.2	1	1	2:05.7	-0.8	H.Kawachi	(Born King)	Manhattan Cafe
2001/04/15	Nakayama	Satsuki Sho (Japanese 2000 Guineas)	G1	T 2000m	7	1.3	1	1	2:00.3	-0.2	H.Kawachi	(Dantsu Flame)	Dantsu Flame, Jungle Pocket

Pedigree

Horse pedigree of Agnes Tachyon (JPN)

Sire Sunday Silence (USA)	Halo (USA)	Hail to Reason (USA)	Turn-to (IRE)
			Nothirdchance (USA)
		Cosmah (USA)	Cosmic Bomb (USA)
			Almahmoud (USA)
	Wishing Well (USA)	Understanding (USA)	Promised Land (USA)
			Pretty Ways (USA)
		Mountain Flower (USA)	Montparnasse (ARG)
			Edelweiss (USA)
Dam Agnes Flora (JPN)	Royal Ski (USA)	Raja Baba (USA)	Bold Ruler (USA)
			Missy Baba (USA)
		Coz o'Nijinsky (USA)	Involvement (USA)
			Gleam (USA)
	Agnes Lady (JPN)	Remand (GB)	Alcide (GB)
			Admonish (GB)
		Ikoma Eikan (JPN)	Sallymount (GB)
			Heatherlands (GB), (Family: 1-l)

Trivia

• One of Jungle Pocket's sired horses, Jungle Tachyon, is also damsired by Agnes Tachyon, being the sire of dam Smart Shower, being named after the two rivals. He was foaled in March 2019 and currently is a NAR racehorse.