# Sato’s cheque for All Girls win is 100x more than Wang’s UCI prize

*By Simon | April 27, 2026*

---

![sato-agc](https://globalkeirin.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/04/sato-agc.jpg)

## 󠀁[Sato’s cheque for All Girls win is 100x more than Wang’s UCI prize](https://globalkeirin.com/2026/04/satos-cheque-for-all-girls-win-is-100x-more-than-wangs-uci-prize/)󠁿

27 April 2026

One rider notably absent from the UCI’s Track World Cup in Nilai was the
organisation’s world champion,
[Mina Sato](https://globalkeirin.com/rider/mina-sato/).

She opted to stay at home, and defend her All Girls Classic G1 title, her
seventh G1 title in all – and a continuation of her streak in the sport’s
top-graded events.

Sato’s recent record in domestic keirin is remarkable. She is now unbeaten in
individual races in a full calendar year: the last time someone finished ahead
of her was day two of the same event last year – and of course, she avenged that
defeat the following day.

Sunday’s victory was never really in doubt. Sato, in white, surged to the front
with a lap remaining – and only
[Riyu Ohta](https://globalkeirin.com/rider/riyu-ohta/) could stay with her. Ohta
emerged from Sato’s slipstream, hoping to slingshot out of the final corner –
but she couldn’t even get alongside.

[https://wm.st.keirin.jp/wm-keirin31/20260426-31-05-12-01-00.mp4](https://wm.st.keirin.jp/wm-keirin31/20260426-31-05-12-01-00.mp4)

Sato’s win in Friday’s Tiara Cup – in a field of top-ranked competitors like
Kodama, Ozaki and Umekawa – was even more striking. She entered the final lap in
fifth, with a big gap ahead to fourth. Half a lap later, she was in the lead,
and disappearing into the distance. The official result says the margin of
victory was a ‘large difference’.

[https://wm.st.keirin.jp/wm-keirin31/20260424-31-05-12-01-00.mp4](https://wm.st.keirin.jp/wm-keirin31/20260424-31-05-12-01-00.mp4)

Sato’s reward for her weekend’s work: an oversized cheque for 12 million yen –
US$75,000, or €64,000.

[Meanwhile, in Malaysia](https://globalkeirin.com/2026/04/chinas-spring-roll-continues-as-wang-wins-in-nilai/)[,](https://globalkeirin.com/rider/wang-lijuan/)
Wang Lijuan earned €625 (US$ 733) – _yes, over 100 times less_ – for her triumph
against the likes of Finucane, Cuadrado, and the Japan-bound van de Wouw.
(source:
[UCI PDF](https://assets.ctfassets.net/761l7gh5x5an/2dcCoXebU9Y2gZASyPyGSs/9e813832851ec9b7e3bd3c785f6db41a/Technical_Guide__2026_UCI_Track_World_Cup_As_at_15.04.26.pdf)
)

There’s a curious imbalance in women’s keirin right now, highlighted by Sato’s
hopping between domestic and UCI competition. The Japanese domestic scene is
financially so much stronger than the UCI’s model – and
[getting stronger](https://globalkeirin.com/2026/04/japanese-keirin-betting-grew-another-16-this-year/)
every year. But Sato is better than everyone else in Japan by a ‘large
difference’.

Is it beyond our sport’s greatest minds to find a way to combine the strongest
business model with the strongest sporting proposition?

**Categories:** Original
**Tags:** japan