「高知競馬を代表する騎手に」10年後の自分へ誓う夢　新人騎手・近藤翔月（17）

"Letters to the Future" introduces dedicated people in Kochi. This time, Shogetsu Kondo, a rookie jockey at Kochi Racecourse, pens a message to his future self. 2:00 AM. His day begins while most people are asleep. Shogetsu Kondo, a 17-year-old rookie jockey at Kochi Racecourse. (Shogetsu Kondo) "Horse training is about to begin. I usually wake up about 30 minutes before training starts, around 1:30 AM." Kochi Racecourse is shrouded in silence. In the cool pre-dawn air, jockeys work up a sweat, working on their horses. (Shogetsu Kondo) "We train each horse to the best of our ability, so that it can win the next race. It's also a time for me to communicate with the horse." This is a crucial time for honing my skills as a jockey and, above all, building a relationship of trust with the horse. Kondo leads this lifestyle six days a week, including race days. By the time he finishes training, the clock has already moved past 8:00 AM. (Kondo Shogetsu) "Thank you for your hard work. I'm going to eat in the cafeteria now. With this job, lunch is practically lunchtime." "Excuse me, I'll have the tamagoyaki set meal." He sits down in his usual seat and takes a deep breath. "Masumi, it's delicious!" Kondo is originally from Ehime Prefecture. He lives away from his parents in a dormitory. He decided he wanted to become a jockey in the first grade of elementary school. (Kondo Shogetsu) "When I was in the first grade of elementary school, I went to Hanshin Racecourse with my father and thought jockeys were cool, and that's what got me started." He started riding horses in the fourth grade of elementary school, and after graduating from junior high school, he went to the Tochigi Prefecture Regional Horse Racing Training Center, which trains jockeys. His two years there were both difficult and enjoyable. (Shogetsu Kondo) "I couldn't use my smartphone inside the (Liberal Arts) Center. I was only allowed to go outside once every two weeks. Around October of my first year, I fell off my horse and broke my finger, which meant I couldn't ride a horse for a month, which was really tough. There were some tough times, but I think it was a pretty fulfilling two years." After overcoming rigorous training, he passed the jockey license exam last year. This spring, he took the first step in his career as a jockey at Kochi Racecourse, near his hometown of Ehime. (Shogetsu Kondo) "Honestly, I think it's a much easier place to live than my hometown (Ehime). The food is delicious. (What's your favorite food?) Fish." Kondo's debut at Kochi Racecourse was on April 5th. In the fifth and final race of the day, Kondo achieved the remarkable feat of winning his first race on his debut day. (Shozuki Kondo) "I couldn't believe it when he broke away in the final stretch and won. I was happy, but the horse's ability was what allowed me to win, so it wasn't a satisfying race." His mentor, trainer Miyagawa, evaluates Kondo's abilities as follows: (Trainer Koichi Miyagawa) "His strengths are his good balance and solid fundamentals. He's only 17 years old, so he has some weaknesses mentally. I want him to learn from the good riders and learn how they ride." Kondo spends every day at the stables caring for his horses. (Shozuki Kondo) "I believe the more you take care of them, the more likely they are to race." Kondo has set a lofty goal of 50 wins this season. His senior jockey, Masamitsu Seno, is watching his progress... (Masamitsu Seno) "I think he can reach 50 wins if he continues in his current form, but I think he'll hit a wall at some point. It'll depend on how he bounces back. I hope he keeps going higher and higher." Since his debut on September 14th, Kondo had steadily accumulated victories, bringing his total to 23, but he was struggling to reach his goal of 50 wins. On this day, he wasn't able to race as well as he'd hoped, finishing six races without a win. (Shogetsu Kondo) "I haven't been able to race aggressively yet, so I'll switch gears and focus on the remaining races." It's a tough world, where even veteran jockeys have days when they can't win. Especially for a rookie who just made his debut. But Kondo is still looking forward. (Shozuki Kondo) "It's been about five months since my debut, but when I stopped winning, there was a period of about a month where I didn't win. I still have a lot to learn, so I think I can win more if I can fix that." Kondo's dream is to become a jockey who represents Kochi Racecourse. The only way to get closer to that dream is to accumulate wins in daily races. This was Kondo's seventh race of the day. He took advantage of his horse's characteristics to take the lead and win with a brilliant run, earning his 24th win. (Shozuki Kondo) "I'm happy to have won safely. I thought it would be best if I could get away. I ended up getting away, so I'm glad I was able to set my own pace. I'm happy to have won one race, but I'm not completely satisfied, so I'll keep this feeling in mind...