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REAL RACING ARCHIVE(documented racing history)

LEGEND · 2000s

T.M. OperaO

テイエムオペラオー

1996–2018THOROUGHBRED“The Millennium King”

Unbeaten in eight starts in 2000, with five Grade 1 wins — ridden by Ryuji Wada in all 26 of his races.

T.M. Opera O as a three-year-old
T.M. Opera O, 10 October 1999
Photo: もがみますみ · Copyrighted free use

02

Horse profile

Fields that could not be verified are omitted.
Sex
Colt / Horse
Coat
Chestnut
Foaled
13 Mar 1996
Died
17 May 2018
Sire
Opera House
Dam
Once Wed
Damsire
Blushing Groom
Breeder
Kineusu Bokujo
Owner
Masatsugu Takezono
Trainer
Ichizo Iwamoto
Career
26 starts, 14 wins

03

Career overview

26
Starts
14
Wins
7
G1 wins
23
Top-three finishes

Racing career 1998–2001

04

Major victories

Grades as printed for each year’s running.

  1. 01 · 18 Apr 1999

    Satsuki Sho

    皐月賞

    GI · Nakayama · Turf 2000m · Ryuji Wada · 2:00.7

  2. 02 · 30 Apr 2000

    Tenno Sho (Spring)

    天皇賞（春）

    GI · Kyoto · Turf 3200m · Ryuji Wada · 3:17.6

  3. 03 · 25 Jun 2000

    Takarazuka Kinen

    宝塚記念

    GI · Hanshin · Turf 2200m · Ryuji Wada · 2:13.8

  4. 04 · 29 Oct 2000

    Tenno Sho (Autumn)

    天皇賞（秋）

    GI · Tokyo · Turf 2000m · Ryuji Wada · 1:59.9

  5. 05 · 26 Nov 2000

    Japan Cup

    ジャパンC

    GI · Tokyo · Turf 2400m · Ryuji Wada · 2:26.1

  6. 06 · 24 Dec 2000

    Arima Kinen

    有馬記念

    GI · Nakayama · Turf 2500m · Ryuji Wada · 2:34.1

  7. 07 · 29 Apr 2001

    Tenno Sho (Spring)

    天皇賞（春）

    GI · Kyoto · Turf 3200m · Ryuji Wada · 3:16.2

FILM

On film

Films published by the JRA official YouTube channel, shown through YouTube’s embedded player.

06

The story

He won the 1999 Satsuki Sho. In 2000 he went eight for eight — including the Tenno Sho (Spring), Takarazuka Kinen, Tenno Sho (Autumn), Japan Cup and Arima Kinen — and was a unanimous Horse of the Year.

His career earnings of ¥1,835,189,000 made him the first racehorse to pass US$10 million, a world record until 2017. Hall of Fame, 2004.

07

Career timeline

Race records are taken from the “Racing record” tables of each horse’s Japanese Wikipedia article (which cite netkeiba.com and JBIS-Search) and cross-checked against the career start count. Grades are shown as printed for that year’s running — current grades are never applied retroactively. “R” marks a record time at the time.

1998

  1. 15 AugNewcomer raceKyoto · Turf 1600m · Ryuji Wada2nd1:36.7

1999

  1. 16 JanMaiden raceKyoto · Dirt 1400m · Ryuji Wada4th1:28.0
  2. 06 FebMaiden raceKyoto · Dirt 1800m · Ryuji Wada1st1:55.6
  3. 27 FebYukiyanagi ShoHanshin · Turf 2000m · Ryuji Wada1st2:05.3
  4. 28 MarMainichi HaiGIIIHanshin · Turf 2000m · Ryuji Wada1st2:04.1
  5. 18 AprSatsuki ShoGINakayama · Turf 2000m · Ryuji Wada1st2:00.7
  6. 06 JunTokyo Yushun (Japanese Derby)GITokyo · Turf 2400m · Ryuji Wada3rd2:25.6
  7. 10 OctKyoto DaishotenGIIKyoto · Turf 2400m · Ryuji Wada3rd2:24.4
  8. 07 NovKikuka ShoGIKyoto · Turf 3000m · Ryuji Wada2nd3:07.7
  9. 04 DecStayers StakesGIINakayama · Turf 3600m · Ryuji Wada2nd3:46.2
  10. 26 DecArima KinenGINakayama · Turf 2500m · Ryuji Wada3rd2:37.2

2000

  1. 20 FebKyoto KinenGIIKyoto · Turf 2200m · Ryuji Wada1st2:13.8
  2. 19 MarHanshin DaishotenGIIHanshin · Turf 3000m · Ryuji Wada1st3:09.4
  3. 30 AprTenno Sho (Spring)GIKyoto · Turf 3200m · Ryuji Wada1st3:17.6
  4. 25 JunTakarazuka KinenGIHanshin · Turf 2200m · Ryuji Wada1st2:13.8
  5. 08 OctKyoto DaishotenGIIKyoto · Turf 2400m · Ryuji Wada1st2:26.0
  6. 29 OctTenno Sho (Autumn)GITokyo · Turf 2000m · Ryuji Wada1st1:59.9
  7. 26 NovJapan CupGITokyo · Turf 2400m · Ryuji Wada1st2:26.1
  8. 24 DecArima KinenGINakayama · Turf 2500m · Ryuji Wada1st2:34.1

2001

  1. 01 AprSankei Osaka HaiGIIHanshin · Turf 2000m · Ryuji Wada4th1:58.7
  2. 29 AprTenno Sho (Spring)GIKyoto · Turf 3200m · Ryuji Wada1st3:16.2
  3. 24 JunTakarazuka KinenGIHanshin · Turf 2200m · Ryuji Wada2nd2:11.9
  4. 07 OctKyoto DaishotenGIIKyoto · Turf 2400m · Ryuji Wada1st2:25.0
  5. 28 OctTenno Sho (Autumn)GITokyo · Turf 2000m · Ryuji Wada2nd2:02.2
  6. 25 NovJapan CupGITokyo · Turf 2400m · Ryuji Wada2nd2:23.8
  7. 23 DecArima KinenGINakayama · Turf 2500m · Ryuji Wada5th2:33.3

08

Pedigree

Source: the pedigree table in Japanese Wikipedia, which cites JBIS-Search.

Horse

Parents

Grandparents

Great-grandparents

Opera Houseオペラハウス1988
Once Wedワンスウエド1984
Sadler's Wells1981
Colorspin1983
Blushing Groom1974
Noura1978
Northern Dancer
Fairy Bridge
High Top
Reprocolor
Red God
Runaway Bride
Key to the Kingdom
River Guide

Sire lineDam lineIn this archive (linked)Family 4号族

09 — MAJOR RACES

Great races contested

10 — JOCKEYS

Riders

  • Ryuji Wada26 rides · 14 wins · G1 7

11 — RIVALS

Grade 1 opponents

  • メイショウドトウTakarazuka Kinen 2000 · Tenno Sho (Autumn) 2000 · Japan Cup 2000 · Arima Kinen 2000 · Tenno Sho (Spring) 2001 · Takarazuka Kinen 2001
  • オースミブライトSatsuki Sho 1999
  • アドマイヤベガTokyo Yushun (Japanese Derby) 1999
  • ナリタトップロードKikuka Sho 1999
  • グラスワンダーArima Kinen 1999
  • ラスカルスズカTenno Sho (Spring) 2000

Recorded as the winner (in defeat) or runner-up (in victory). Names as recorded in Japanese.

13

Legacy

  1. 2000Japanese Horse of the Year
  2. 2004JRA Hall of Fame

14 — CULTURAL CROSS REFERENCE

From racing history
to popular culture

Where the record meets the culture it inspired.

  1. REAL RACING ARCHIVE(documented racing history)

    T.M. Opera O

    テイエムオペラオー

    1996–2018 · 7 G1 wins

    A real racehorse. The records, pedigree and honours on this page are documented facts with sources.

  2. FICTION / POP CULTURE REFERENCE(a reference to a work of fiction)

    UMA MUSUME: PRETTY DERBY — A GAME

    テイエムオペラオー

    The game “Umamusume: Pretty Derby” features a character who bears the name of this racehorse. The character is fictional; details of the game’s story are not part of the horse’s documented history.

    Official character list ↗

This site is not affiliated with the game’s rights holders. Character artwork is not shown because permission has not been confirmed. Sources: Wikipedia / Cygames

SOURCES & REFERENCES

Sources & References

Race records are taken from the “Racing record” tables of each horse’s Japanese Wikipedia article (which cite netkeiba.com and JBIS-Search) and cross-checked against the career start count. Grades are shown as printed for that year’s running — current grades are never applied retroactively.

  1. 01
    テイエムオペラオー — Wikipedia（日本語版）

    Wikipedia · Reference · Accessed 2026-09-26

  2. 02
    T. M. Opera O — Wikipedia (English)

    Wikipedia · Reference · Accessed 2026-09-26

  3. 03
    テイエムオペラオー｜JBISサーチ

    公益社団法人 日本軽種馬協会（JBIS-Search） · Racing record · Accessed 2026-09-26

  4. 04
    テイエムオペラオー：名馬の殿堂（顕彰馬）｜JRA

    日本中央競馬会（JRA） · Official · Accessed 2026-09-26

  5. 05
    ウマ娘 プリティーダービーの登場キャラクター — Wikipedia（日本語版, revision 111119000）

    Wikipedia · Reference · Accessed 2026-09-26

  6. 06
    CHARACTER｜ウマ娘 プリティーダービー 公式ポータルサイト

    Cygames · Official · Accessed 2026-09-26

IMAGE CREDITS

Image credits

Each photograph was checked on its individual Wikimedia Commons file page for author and licence.

  • T.M. Opera O, 10 October 1999

    Photo: もがみますみ · Copyrighted free use · Wikimedia Commons