SAMURAI spirit and a strong work ethic has helped Japanese horse trainer Daiki Chujo thrive in one of the toughest industries in the country.
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The 41-year-old has made a name for himself as a successful trainer across the Northern Rivers.
It is a big effort considering he moved to Australia as a 16-year-old and had only saw his first horse in person a few years earlier.
"Horse racing is really popular in Japan, but it's hard to get into unless you have a family connection," he said.
"I saw an ad in one of our magazines and there was a racing school opening up that were looking for international students."
He had dreams of eventually representing Japan at the Olympics in equestrian.
He also wanted to be a full-time jockey and slept in stables across three continents with next to no money to his name.
Fast forward to today and he now has international students of his own with about 25 horses and workers at his Ballina stables.
Having no money never seemed to worry him and a normal day now can see him up at 3.30am and working through until 10pm.
"I follow our Japanese culture where you're brought up with a strong work ethic and that's still in me," Daiki said.
"It's a bit like a samurai, we're all heart and we just keep going, we don't stop."
Daiki has two siblings in Japan with three children of his own from a previous marriage.
He was a track work rider and thought he could use the skills from equestrian and incorporate that into horse training.
He represented Japan at the Asian Pacific Challenge where he finished second and competed successfully in international classes throughout Europe.
At his peak he gained the first reserve spot for Japan at the Asian Games.
"I didn't quite make the Olympics, but that fulfilled my dreams," he said.
His return to Australia in 2014 saw him link up with Newcastle trainer Kris Lees who has been a mentor.
It encouraged him to break out on his own where he formed the Japanoz Equestrian & Racing Stables.
It started on the Tweed Coast before he relocated to Ballina to expand the business three years ago.
"Kris a really nice guy to work for and he's been my role model," he said.
"I admired how he treated the horses and the people who work for him.
"That's something I've tried to carry over and having a happy team is really important in racing."
His most memorable win was at Lismore a few years ago where he linked up with Japanese jockey Kanichiro Fujii.
The former Australian-based jockey known as 'Joe' has been wheelchair-bound after a race fall in Japan two years ago.
"He is the same age as me and a best friend," Daiki said.
"We had a similar path and became really good friends because of those shared experiences.
"When he rode a winner for me at Lismore we were both really emotional reflecting on where we've been and what we've done.
"It was only a country maiden, but that didn't matter to us."
"Looking back now it's even more emotional since he's fallen on hard times."
Daiki was instrumental in $525,000 going to the Riding for the Disabled NSW group when Obamburumai won the Golden Eagle in November.
He was the acting interpreter for the Japenese race team with 10 per cent of the winners cheque donated to charity.
One of his dreams is to train a horse suitable to take home and win on home soil in the Japan Cup.
It would be a fitting return for a kid who embraced his samurai spirit.
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