The global equine enigmas who turned losing into an art form

In the early 2000s a skittish racehorse with a unblemished record and a pink Hello Kitty hood took Japan by storm. Record crowds flocked to see her race, merchandise flew off the shelves, there was even a pop song written about her. Yet Haru Urara, whose name means Glorious Spring, was famous not for winning but for losing. Her record on retirement stood at a gallant no wins in 113 races, earning her the touching sobriquet 'the shining star of losers everywhere'.

Japan's long sad wait for Arc success, which is now set to stretch to 48 years after this season's hope Makahiki could beat only two home at Chantilly, is not in the same realm of failure as Haru Urara but the story of the shining star does cast some light on why this racing powerhouse does not become disillusioned or discouraged by decades of frustration. Indeed, Haru-mania might tell us a lot about the Japanese in general.

Haru Urara, you see, became a phenomenon because she represented a message of relentless positivity in the face of failure at a time when the nation was at a low ebb. While in America, Seabiscuit's rags-to-riches story was a fairytale for an anxious, destitute people trying to escape the Great Depression, Haru Urara's dogged tenacity became a symbol of perseverance to a nation tired and washed-out after years of economic stagnation, a period known as Japan's 'lost decade'.