Following a winter of mixed results, the Tomokazu Takano trained Lathyros, who had already been Group 3 placed as a 2yo, enjoyed a more successful summer during which she recorded a victory and was also Group 2 placed.

Lathyros won a 0,000 allowance race at the Hakodate racecourse on 21 July, before finishing a good fourth in the HTB Sho at Sapporo racecourse in August. Encouraged by her performance, her connections decided to run her in a Group race at Hanshin. A large racecourse situated between Osaka and Kobe, Hanshin plays host to several Group 1 races, including the Japanese 1,000 Guineas, as well as the Hanshin Juvenile Fillies and Asahi Hai Futurity Stakes. On 16 September, Lathyros lined up at the start of the Group 2 Kansai Telecasting Corp. Sho Rose, which is run over 1800 metres on turf, where she finished a good third.

Sweet Hearth, the dam of Lathyros, was trained by Alain de Royer-Dupré in France where she had won the Listed Prix de la Cochère. She had also been the runner-up of the Group 1 Prix de La Forêt. I.T.C. had managed her racing career for her owner Investimenti Immobiliari R. Ma and when Sweet Hearth was retired from racing, she was exported to Japan as a broodmare. Lathyros, who currently has earned nearly €300,000 in prize-money, is her fourth foal.