Naohide Fukuhara, former male Fuji TV announcer, on his second career: “When I left the company, I felt refreshed.”

The “face of Sunday horse racing,” who has worked on such programs as “Minna no KEIBA,” applied for early retirement and became a freelancer in the spring of 2010.

Former Fuji Television announcer Naohide Fukuhara (57) retired early from Fuji in March 2010. Nearly three years have passed since his retirement, and Fukuhara is steadily moving forward in his new life as an announcer, using the experience he has cultivated as an MC for horse racing and other programs.

He says, “At the end of the year before I left Fuji Television, the Personnel Bureau suddenly called for early retirement for employees over 50 years of age. Until then, I had a vague idea that I would be staying at this company until retirement. I had a vague idea that I would stay with the company until retirement, but I thought that this might be a “voice from heaven.

Fukuhara decided to resign and consulted his family. He was worried about how his wife would react to the fact that he had no prospects for retirement, but she encouraged him, saying, “Dad, you’ve worked hard enough.

Watching the Derby in high school…

Fukuhara, the face of Sunday horse racing, first became interested in horse racing when he was in high school. When he was in his first year of high school, he watched his first horse race, the Japan Derby. The winner was Mr. Seabee, who would later win the Triple Crown.

There were so many horses running that I didn’t really know where Mr. Seabee was, but I could tell from the play-by-play announcer’s voice that he had won.

It was a time when horse racing was beginning to boom, and Fukuhara gradually became absorbed in the sport.

“I hardly studied for the exams, but watched horse races all the time. At the end of the year, when I was really pushing myself to study for the entrance examinations, the Arima Kinen was coming up, so when I had to choose which race to watch, I ended up watching the Arima Kinen.

After all, after ronin, he was accepted into Waseda University. During his college years, he visited not only horse race tracks but also farms in Hokkaido, where he had the opportunity to see famous horses such as Shinzan, Hiseiko, and Tousho Boy in person.

In 1992, he joined Fuji Television Network. During an interview for the position, Fukuhara stated that he wanted to host a live horse racing show, and in April 1994, his third year at Fuji Television, he was chosen to be the MC for “Super Horse Racing,” a live horse racing program for Central Japan.

I thought it was my role to liven things up around the one-and-a-half to two-minute race play-by-play segments in the hour-long program, which are the flower of this job. I had been watching horse racing since I was a student, so I had a deep-seated love of talking about horse racing.”

Later, Fukuhara was transferred to the New York bureau, which meant that he was away from the program for a while, but he continued to work as MC and race commentator for “Minna no KEIBA,” the successor to “Super Horse Racing,” and was the very face of live horse racing until his retirement in March 2010.

He continued to be the face of the horse racing coverage until he left the company in March 2010. “I visited racecourses and farms on my days off and talked with various people involved in horse racing. I went to the “Select Sale,” the largest auction of racehorses in Japan, held in Hokkaido every year.

There was a time when I was both a live horse racing MC and “Mezamashi TV,” and when “Mezamashi” finished at 8:00 a.m., I would fly to Hokkaido from Haneda on the same day and return to Tokyo at night. The next morning, after appearing on “Mezamashi,” I would go back to Hokkaido. It was fun, so it wasn’t hard at all.

Shedding the Coat of “Company Employee

In his 30-year career at Fuji Television, horse racing was not just a job for Fukuhara, but a way of life itself. Although Fukuhara had established a firm position in the world of horse racing, he was also troubled by his position as a member of the Fuji Television organization.

When you are over 50 years old, the training of younger employees becomes an important theme within the organization,” he said. But when I think about what I can teach or give advice to younger employees, I don’t have the confidence to do so. At the same time, I was aware that a person like myself would not be very useful to the organization, and the word “quitting time” had been a stain on my mind for a long time.

Fukuhara left the organization in the spring of 2010, but at first he still felt uneasy about the days when he had no work.

If you don’t have a job, you have no choice but to stay home,” he said. The numbers on the pedometer on my smartphone app dropped dramatically in April and May. I have to be disciplined from now on. I thought to myself, ‘I must discipline myself from now on; I mustn’t drink from noon on. It’s been three whole years since I went freelance, and I still haven’t had a drink in the afternoon.

Currently, he appears on “Yutaka Taketoyo TV! II” on Fuji Television One, “Horse Racing Broth” on the Green Channel, has a regular column in Sankei Sports newspaper, and also appears on YouTube. His work is getting on track.

When I resigned from the company, I felt a sense of relief. It was like an exhilarating feeling of taking off the coat of a company employee and becoming lighter. But to be honest, there are still times when I feel a little cold (laughs).

We are sure to see Fukuhara in action along with the G1 spring horse racing season.

From the March 28, 2025 issue of FRIDAY