Okabe began riding horses in early childhood, and by the time he was in elementary school he was able to trot and canter on his own.

[3] Okabe began his career as a jockey in the fall of his third year in junior high school.

Hachiro Kasuga, Kyosen Ōhashi, Tarō Yamada and others attended, and his colleague, Itō, sang Hiroshi Itsuki's "Futari no Tabiji".

[6] On January 14, 1995, Okabe had achieved a total of 2,017 wins, the highest number in the history of the Japan Racing Association (JRA).

[7] In 1998, he rode on Taiki Shuttle and won the French Jacques Le Marois Award, achieving the long-sought international G1 victory outside Japan.