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British punters may be back in action next month in Japan, following the decision by Charlie Appleby to enter eight of his horses in races there.
Japan is one of the few countries where horse racing continues behind closed doors during the coronavirus crisis, though that situation is not certain to last long enough for Appleby’s horses to benefit and nor are they certain to be allowed to run in any case.A selection committee of Japan’s ruling body is to meet on Friday to decide whether each of the Appleby entrants is sufficiently highly rated to be given a slot in the races, which range in status from Listed to Group One. But that ought to be a formality in the case of Magic Lily, runner-up in the top-class Jebel Hatta in Dubai last month, where she was beaten only by Barney Roy. Magic Lily, who was beaten less than a length in the 2017 Fillies’ Mile at Newmarket, is entered for Tokyo’s Victoria Mile on 17 May, a race that was worth £778,000 to the winner last year.
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