Haru Urara Passes Away At 29

Iconic underdog race horse Haru Urara has passed away, months after reaching new fans via the Umamusume Pretty Derby mobile game.

Via Yahoo News Japan, representatives of Martha farm said the Haru Urara died of Colic, caused by undigested food in her system.

The horse was 29 years old, approximately 90 in horse years.

"She hadn't defecated on the morning of the 8th, so I thought this was a bit concerning. I called the vet for treatment, and we stayed by her side all night… But her condition suddenly worsened at dawn, and she passed away. It's truly heartbreaking", says Yuko Miyahara, representative of Martha Farm and head of the Haru Urara Association.

Miyahara also described Urara's condition just prior to the news:

"She was perfectly fine just yesterday. Then suddenly… Recently, more and more people were coming to see Urara, not just from Japan but from overseas too. So it's truly heartbreaking…", she says.

How Haru Urara Captured The Internet

Decades before the gacha game, Haru Urara had already captured the heart of racing fans- she retired from racing with a career of 0-113, never winning a single race.

She had become a local hero as a result of the race, with some viewing tickets betting on the horse as a good luck talisman since there was clearly no luck allocated for her.

This popularity would reach a new generation with Umamusume Pretty Derby, which featured a character named after the horse with a similar story- having a permanently upbeat personality despite never winning any races.

The character's popularity would peak again with the global release of the game, which coincidentally coincided with a program to donate fresh ryegrass for retired racehorses- and saw an uptick in orders to treat Haru Urara.

Cygames had even put out special guidelines for visiting many of the namesake horses, who live at ranches across Japan.