Route runner Mywomanfromtokyo capable of taking Mamie Eisenhower sprint

Mywomanfromtokyo is at heart a route horse, not a sprinter, but for now, sprints will have to do.

The first stakes race at Prairie Meadows for older Iowa-bred females, Friday’s $65,000 Mamie Eisenhower is contested at six furlongs.

As a 3-year-old last season, Mywomanfromtokyo needed two turns to show her best. But judging from a solid second-place finish in a recent sprint allowance, the talent edge she has on her divisional rivals might be great enough to allow Mywomanfromtokyo to win at a distance short of her best.

All eight of the entrants in the Mamie Eisenhower contested an April 27 Iowa-bred allowance at six furlongs. Despite being run at a moderate pace, the race fell apart, and 41-1 shot Foxy Fleda was there to pick up the pieces. As a 7-year-old with 30 starts, Foxy Fleda figures an unlikely repeat winner in the Mamie Eisenhower, but Mywomanfromtokyo was just behind her.

The Kelly Von Hemel-trained Mywomanfromtokyo, who won three two-turn stakes by open lengths last summer locally, was making her first start in eight months. She can reasonably be expected to improve Friday, and several front-running types should set up the race for something off the pace.