Takamatsunomiya Kinen

高松宮記念 (About 6 furlongs) Allowances 2 kg for fillies and mares The Takamatsunomiya Kinen is a Grade 1 flat horse race in Japan for four-year-old and above thoroughbreds. It is run over a distance of 1,200 metres (approximately 6 furlongs) at Chukyo Racecourse in late March.

The forerunner of this race was the Chukyo Daishoten. It was started as the Takamatsunomiya Hai when the victory cup was designed by Prince Takamatsu in 1971, and was given Domestic Grade 2 status when race grading was introduced to Japan in 1984. At the time, it was run over a distance of 2,000 metres. This was shortened to 1,200 metres and elevated to Domestic Grade 1 in 1996, and to its present level in 2006. Horses trained outside Japan have been eligible to run in the race since 2001. It was renamed the Takamatsunomiya Kinen in 1998 because the family of Prince Takamatsu stopped designing the victory cup.

From 2011, the Takamatsunomiya Kinen has taken over from the Centaur Stakes as one of the Japanese legs of the Global Sprint Challenge Series. It's the second race of the series, preceded by the Lightning Stakes and followed by the Dubai Golden Shaheen.

It is also the only JRA Grade 1 turf race not held at one of the 4 major racecourses (Hanshin, Kyoto, Nakayama, Tokyo).