The Asian Mile Challenge is a series of four one-mile (eight furlongs) Thoroughbred horse races. Created in 2005, the series was launched with two races, one in Hong Kong, the other in Japan. In 2006, the Melbourne Racing Club of Australia and the Dubai Racing Club of the United Arab Emirates joined the series.
Raced approxinmately four weeks apart between March and June, a US$1 million bonus is given to any horse who wins two legs of the Asian Mile Challenge. In 2006, the Hong Kong-based horse Bullish Luck collected the bonus after winning the Champions Mile and the Yasuda Kinen.
The Asian Mile Challenge now consists of four Grade I races:
- Futurity Stakes at Caulfield Racecourse, Melbourne
- Dubai Duty Free Stakes at Meydan Racecourse in Dubai
- Champions Mile at Sha Tin Racecourse, Hong Kong
- Yasuda Kinen at Tokyo Racecourse, Tokyo
Famous quotes containing the words asian, mile and/or challenge:
“If he roars at you as you’re dyin’
You’ll know it is the Asian Lion.”
—Carolyn Wells (1862–1942)
“May they stumble, stage by stage
On an endless pilgrimage,
Dawn and dusk, mile after mile,
At each and every step, a stile;”
—Robert Graves (1895–1985)
“Do your children view themselves as successes or failures? Are they being encouraged to be inquisitive or passive? Are they afraid to challenge authority and to question assumptions? Do they feel comfortable adapting to change? Are they easily discouraged if they cannot arrive at a solution to a problem? The answers to those questions will give you a better appraisal of their education than any list of courses, grades, or test scores.”
—Lawrence Kutner (20th century)