Okabe began his career as a jockey in the fall of his third year in junior high school. He applied to the jockey training center of Bajik
ōen, took the exam with the consent of his father, and passed the exam. In 1978, he achieved 500 wins and held a commemorative party.
Hachiro Kasuga,
Kyosen Ōhashi, Tarō Yamada and others attended, and his colleague, Itō, sang
Hiroshi Itsuki's "Futari no Tabiji". During his time as the top jockey of
Kantō region, Okabe was strong in long-distance races, winning 7 each of Diamond Stakes (3200m) and Stayers Stakes (3600m) (both are the most wins in race history). He also won the Kikuka Award (3000m) three times and the Tennō Award (3200m) four times in the eight major races, and was called the "long-distance
oni". 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). In 1998, he rode on
Taiki Shuttle and won the French
Jacques Le Marois Award, achieving the long-sought international G1 victory outside Japan. For his achievements abroad, he is said to be a pioneer of Japanese jockeys riding outside Japan. On January 24, 1999, he reached a total of 2,500 wins for the first time in the history of the
JRA Cup. Okabe retired from horseracing in March 2005. == Major wins ==