Further to my earlier post on “Most classic shoujos of all times”….

Sports shoujo (genre) that didn’t include an equestrian/ horse-racing (theme) shoujo????…

Seriously!

e.g. What happened to

“Lady!!” by Youko Hanabusa’s

 (レディ!!  by 英洋子)

The story starts with a 5-year old Lynn travelling with her Japanese mother to England to meet her father. On their way there Lynn and her mother get into a tragic car accident in which Lynn’s mother dies. After getting out of the hospital Lynn moves to live in a manor owned by her father who is an English nobleman. The motherless little girl tries to adjust to high society life and get the approval of her elder step sister, Sara, whose mother has also passed away. At first Sara seems cold and distant towards her new younger sister, because she fears that Lynn’s open and cheerful personality will win over the attention of their father as well as the handsome young man who lives nearby… (From Baka Updates)

or

“Lolly no Seishun” by UEHARA Kimiko (ロリィの青春 by 上原きみこ)

Lolly, our poor heroine who lives with her sick mother and a spoiled sister. Her live was changed when she encountered a handsome horse, Angel; Lolly eventually became the owner of Angel’s son, Happy.

Carl (?) met Lolly and Happy, just as he ran away from his wealthy family. He stayed with Lolly’s family ever since. Lolly was left alone after her mother’s death and her sister left home to pursue for a better life. Carl stayed by her side for support; romance started to develop between the pair….

One day, Lolly met her first “enemy”, Tania, who invited them to an equestrian competition. Just as Lolly and Carl dreamed of wining the gold medal riding Happy in the National Equestrian Competition, Tania & father have set their eyes on Happy and invited Carl for training in her horse barn.  In order to win both Carl and Happy back from Tania & Co, Lolly has to win the next equestrian competition.

How about:

“Derby Queen” by ASHIHARA Hinako (ダービークイーン by 芦原 妃名子)

Ootome Hime’s father was a jockey who dreamed of winning the Japanese Derby. One year, when Hime went to watch him race in the Derby, he died in a horrible racing accident. The man responsible retired in guilt from being a jockey.

10 years later, Hime is in high school, and she has heard that Arakawa Jin, the son of the man who killed her father, is debuting in the Derby as a jockey. She went to see him race, and was outraged to see him win! Now Hime has decided to quit high school and go to a special school for jockeys, in hopes of being able to beat Jin in a race one day. She has met a new friend and aspiring jockey along the way, a boy called Tadano Ryouhei, but she can’t let him stand in the way of her revenge!

or:

“Pony Tail” by ONO Hiromu

(ポニーテイル −女性騎手物語− by 小野弥夢)

Satuki’s father was once the nation’s favourite jockey. After she witnessed her father’s accident in the midst of the national horse racing, Satsuki was determined to be a great jockey just as her father has been. But first she would need to gain an acceptance at the National Jockey Academy, traditionally a boys-only academy. Above all, she would need her father’s approval to become the first ever female jockey….

Just why weren’t any of those mentioned above being included in the “most classics”?????

HUMPH…..!

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Just for the record, another horse riding related shoujo (which i have not read) by MIZUKAMI Wataru,  story written by SUNAGISI Aro:

Kin’iro no kaze ni natsute (Asukotsuto josei kishiyu aoi tori) 

黄(きん)金色の風になって -アスコット- 女性騎手物語

by: 砂岸あろ／作 水上航／絵

(上) – 19世紀、イギリスのウェールズ地方。村で行われた市民レースに、12歳のマリエルは愛馬ムーンドロップに騎乗して参加。見事優勝をさらうのだが、そのレースには天才騎手として注目を集めているアレン・グリンリーフが訪れていた。ひと目会った瞬間に二人は運命的なものを感じ合う…。数々の障害を乗り越えながらも、ひとりの女の子が恋を通して成長していく感動の波瀾万丈物語。

(下) – 二人きりになるために、どこか遠いところへ行こう-そう決意してロンドンを飛び出したアレンとマリエルだったが、現実はきびしかった。アレンが何者かによって連れ去られてしまうのだった。しかし、運命の糸にたぐりよせられるように、二人は再会を果たすことになる…。マリエルの出生の秘密が明らかになり、アレンが騎手生命をかけていどむレースの幕が開く感動の完結編。小学中級から。

.. From the look of it, possibly a historical shoujo set in the late 19th centuary…. 

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*Other horse-riding manga, also by ONO Hiromu: 

Hokka Pokka Bokka  (ほっかポッカ牧歌/ 北海道牧場戀歌)

Machi broke up with her fiance, and with all other things happening in her life at the moment, Machi lost her will to live on in the metropolitan city of Tokyo; she escaped to a rural countryside of Hokkaido instead. There, she met Leo, an Australian living there as a boating coach. Slowly, Machi learned and began to enjoy a new style of living in the country(side), just as her relationship with Leo also became closer and closer…..

Machi began to settle down with Leo at Hokkaido and soon after, she was pregnant and Leo proposed to her. On top of that,  the locals also began to accept Machi as they saw her efforts in trying to blend in with the community…. All was going well for Machi, until her parents found out of her pregnancy. Machi being the only child of her family, the news of her being an “unmarried mother” shocked her parents greatly…. how would Machi and Leo handle their reactions?    

	(細雪戀人) アフタヌーンティ −自選短編集「なごり雪」−ストーリー：独身最後のひとり旅を田舎で２〜３日すごすことにしたミランダは 立ち寄った村で羊を放牧するアンディに出会う。 家のために望まぬ相手との政略結婚を決めたミランダは、 ささやかだが自分の生活を愛することが出来るアンディをうらやむ。　　　　　　　 解説：３編の恋愛作品を集めた自選短編集「なごり雪」に収録。 主人公・ミランダが、羊の放牧地で写真を撮っているところを、 後ろから農耕馬に押されるシーン（P160-61）に斑毛の馬が１頭と、 婚約者と乗馬服姿で語り合うシーン（P175）に二頭の馬が描かれている。初出誌：mimi Carnival　1991年10月号に掲載キーワード：恋愛・羊の放牧・斑毛・乗馬服
	草原に抱かれて眠りたい　−自選短編集「なごり雪」ストーリー：大牧場の社長令嬢の美雪は、馬に明け暮れる生活から逃れるように、 東京の大学に進学したが、突然北海道にに戻ってくる。 幼なじみの一志は美雪の父の牧場で育成を学んでいるが、再会した美雪が 無茶な乗馬をしたり、酔って悪ふざけをしたりする様子を心配する。 馬の出産に立ち合った美雪は自分が望まれない命を宿していることを告白する。　　　　　　　解説：３編の恋愛作品を集めた自選短編集「なごり雪」に収録。 牧場を舞台にした49頁の短編。馬が名前をよばれるシーンはないが 放牧された多くの馬たちの姿、馬の出産シーンや、母親を亡くした仔馬のために 道産子の乳母馬をつれてくるエピソードなども描かれている。　　　　　　　初出誌：Monthly mimi　1994 年３月号に掲載キーワード：牧場・馬の出産・馬の育成・道産子

	草原のパッションストーリー：北海道サンライズファーム・獣医センターに勤務する森下今日香は、 男勝りの根性と気性で、馬産地の獣医をつとめている。 主任の熊川、彼の息子の一馬、助手の田島、馬産地に生きる人々とのふれあいや、 繁殖牝馬、競走馬など多くの馬たちの生死と向き合う女性獣医の奮戦記。解説：第１話では馬の出産・種付け、２話は骨折した競走馬の治療、３話は厩舎火災、 ４話では今日香の恋愛が描かれている。１話完結の４話を収録。 サンライズ以外は名前が呼ばれるシーンはないが、多くの馬たちが登場。 馬の出産、手術シーン、生産・育成過程の細かい部分も随所に描かれている。初出誌：コーラスペシャル　1998年 Summer　に第１話を掲載
	キーワード：獣医・馬の出産・厩舎火災・競走馬の骨折・馬産地

(Further info: *ttp://homepage.mac.com/horsy/comic/ono.html)

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