Uma Musume: From Being Knocked Ten Meters Away

Chapter 262: We hope to launch an overseas expedition next year?
In order to break this common sense, or rather, to break the overseas horse girls' dominance over the Japan Cup, many Japanese horse girls have launched challenges to the Japan Cup, including some powerful and legendary horse girls.

For example, the Tamamo Cross, and the Oguri Hat.

However, they were not on the list of winners of the Japan Cup.

To be honest, when Yasui Makoto looked back on that period of competition history, he had to admit the gap between Japan and the world.

For example, in the Japan Cup match that Tamamo Cruz and Oguri Hats participated in, their opponent was Toni Bianca from Italy.

Before participating in the Japan Cup, this female racehorse had just won the Arc de Triomphe Prize, and the reports at the time used this as a gimmick, making a big declaration that she was "challenging the world's strongest".

In that competition, Tony Bianca did not win the championship, but only finished fifth.

However, post-race examinations revealed that she fractured her leg while crossing the finish line on the final straight, and finished fifth despite the fracture.

Upon seeing this, Yasui felt completely numb.

He has just suffered a fracture, and it's a mild crack, but it's already affecting his daily life.

He couldn't imagine how Tony Bianca could finish the race and achieve a fifth-place finish in such a high-speed race at speeds of up to 60 kilometers per hour, despite having a broken bone.

More importantly, her opponents included not only the strongest active player at the time, Tamamo Cross, and later the strongest active player, Oguri Hat, but also other powerful opponents from overseas.

"I can't understand it, I'm numb," was the last thing Yasui Makoto could say.

This breakthrough and challenge can be said to have been achieved, precisely through the East Sea Emperor on the screen, and the subsequent special week.

After that, Japanese female racehorses began to appear more and more frequently on the list of Japan Cup winners.

However, using the Tokai Emperor and Special Week as a dividing line, Yasui Makoto believes that this does not mean that Japan's level has caught up with the world.

Since then, for reasons unknown, the URA Association has taken a strange turn in its approach to improving Japan Cup results.

The racecourse and the speed that racehorses can run are closely related.

Generally speaking, the closer the track is to the natural state, that is, the softer the grass, the more comfortable the racehorses will run.

The more artificially treated the track, the harder it becomes, and the faster the racehorses will run after a certain period of adaptation.

Internationally, most venues adopt the former approach. For example, European venues are very close to natural grass fields, and although American venues are mainly dirt fields, the approach is the same.

Japan, on the other hand, chose the latter approach, making the playing surface increasingly harder.

In this situation, having adapted to the venue and already capable of running at a faster pace, their performance in the Japan Cup or other competitions that are gradually opening up to the world will naturally improve.

Yasui Makoto said he couldn't comment on this line of thinking and the corresponding approach.

However, even in unfamiliar venues, overseas female racehorses have still won championships in recent years, which is enough to show that the gap between Japan and the world still exists.

It was precisely because he knew these things that Yasui Makoto frowned.

Even playing at home doesn't guarantee a win, let alone playing away...

That's why, after all these years of the Arc de Triomphe Award, there hasn't been a single champion.

After frowning and pondering for a while, Yasui Makoto did not directly answer the Emperor of the East Sea's question, but instead asked in return:
"Is this your idea, or... the attitude of the school council, or the association?"

He was well aware that the various parties involved in this issue were not the same.

For the female racehorses, things are simple: train, race, win, and at most, they might consider that the bigger and more exciting the stage, the better.

But it's different for other initiators, which means a variety of completely different considerations and resource allocations.

For example, the Northern Black Steed is currently enjoying great success. If they were to launch a campaign themed around an "overseas expedition," it would undoubtedly cause a sensation and bring in various benefits. Upon hearing Yasui's question, the Emperor of the East Sea's eyes flashed with admiration.

She quickly exchanged a glance with Megumi McQueen and the others, then looked at Yasui Makoto and said seriously:

"I knew you would understand."

"Actually, from our perspective, we... do not recommend that you and Xiao Bei consider overseas expeditions right now."

"Even though...we thought about this a long time ago."

This statement surprised Yasui Makoto, and he couldn't help but blurt out:

"You guys thought about this a long time ago?"

At this moment, McQueen leaned forward slightly and explained in a clear and logical manner:

"Actually, the reason why the emperor wanted you to guide Xiao Bei was largely because he felt that you were different from most Japanese trainers."

"Judging from your family situation, your parents are using the same training methods as everyone else here, but your style..."

"On the contrary, it is very similar to that of Europe and America."

She crossed her arms, rubbed her cheeks, and her eyes flickered with memories and contemplation:

“We have observed that when you are training Xiao Bei, you pay great attention to exploring her own potential and emphasize personalized training methods, rather than blindly following the traditional model.”

"This style is very common in training systems in Europe and America."

"At the same time, you are very comfortable with the style of play here... no, this is also a specific application of the European and American style."

"Before the competition, you will conduct a lot of research, calculations, and simulations, and design strategies and tactics in an extremely detailed manner."

"I'm not saying that the qualities, will, and mindset emphasized here are useless."

"Compared to such abstract and general concepts, your approach is obviously more controllable, and can be replicated and promoted."

"Therefore, we have long envisioned that if the right opportunity arises, perhaps you could lead our racehorse girls to showcase a different kind of charm on overseas racetracks."

As McQueen made this clear analysis, the Emperor of the East Sea, the Great Shock, and the Golden Master all looked on with deep agreement.

They had clearly discussed this for a long time and reached a consensus; they were simply using McQueen's words to tell Yasui Makoto.

On the other side, Yasui Makoto was even more surprised and seemed to be deep in thought.

Looking back on his past training experiences, he did not completely copy the traditional Japanese training philosophy.

As Mejiro McQueen said, most Japanese trainers emphasize the emotional or sensual aspect of "kindness," and there is even a saying that they "have a connection with racehorse girls," and their training methods are based on this.

In Yasui Makoto's view, these things were indeed very Japanese, very idealistic, and completely incomprehensible.

He is more receptive to training methods that are visible and tangible. It is for this reason that he designs various special training programs based on the characteristics of the Northern Black Horse, so as to bring out her strengths and make up for her weaknesses.

While pondering these things, he didn't forget the main topic.

"So you want Xiao Bei and me to prepare some more, see how things go, and then consider the overseas expedition?"

Looking at the screen, he tentatively asked:
"And then the council and the association... want us to launch an overseas expedition next year?"

(End of this chapter)