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Sean Taylor, a 24-year-old free safety with the Washington Redskins, was shot and seriously injured at his Miami home.

The shooting occurred about 1:45 a.m. in his home in Palmetto Bay, an upscale section of Miami, said Kathy Webb, a spokeswoman for the Miami-Dade police. Mr. Taylor appeared to be the victim of an attempted robbery, police officials said.

He was flown by helicopter to a trauma center at Jackson Memorial hospital, where he underwent emergency surgery and was listed in critical condition. Taylor was hit by at least one bullet in his femoral artery — a major blood vessel in the thigh.

Sean Taylor was a star football player at the University of Miami — earning the Big East Conference Defensive Player of the Year award — and was selected fifth over all in the 2004 National Football League draft by the Washington Redskins.

The team signed him to a seven-year, $18 million contract, and he is widely considered one of the toughest and best young safeties in the league. Although sidelined for the last two weeks because of a knee sprain, he leads his team this season with five interceptions.

Taylor has drawn attention for more than his playing ability, most notably in 2005. In June of that year, he was arrested and charged with felony assault after the authorities said he pointed a gun at three men outside a house in West Perrine, a rough neighborhood south of Miami, and accused them of stealing two all-terrain vehicles from him.

According to the police and witnesses, Taylor, accompanied by an entourage, assaulted one of the men and made death threats before driving off. Minutes later, a group of men drove by his parked GMC Yukon Denali and sprayed it with bullets from an AK-47 and a pistol. Taylor’s vehicle was empty at the time, and the gunmen were never identified or arrested.

Taylor was accused of spitting on yet another player from an opposing team, this time Michael Pittman of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, during the first round of the playoffs. He was ejected from the game and fined $17,000. It was an unfitting end to what should have been a triumphant day for Mr. Taylor, who scored a touchdown that helped propel the Redskins to a 17-10 victory and a spot in the next round of the playoffs.

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Video: Ray Mancini vs Arturo Frias fight on May 8, 1982 in Las Vegas for world lightweight title. In what was often called the best first round in boxing history

Fifteen seconds into the fight, the champion Arturo Frias caught Mancini with a left hook to the chin and Mancini shook. Another combination made Mancini start bleeding from his eyebrow. About a minute later Mancini stormed back and dropped the champion right in the center of the ring with a spectacular combination. Frias got back up, but Mancini went after with his vicious combination, trapping Frias against the ropes. After many unanswered blows, the referee stopped the fight, and the Ray “Boom Boom” Mancini became world lightweight champion.

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On November 13, 1982, lightweight champion Ray Boom Boom Mancini met Duk Koo Kim at Caesar’s Palace in Las Vegas, NV. It changed Mancini’s career and boxing world forever.

Champion: Ray Mancini

Raymond Michael Mancini (1961) is a former popular boxer from the Youngstown, Ohio. His nickname “Boom Boom” came from his father, Lennie “Boom Boom” Mancini, veteran boxer. Lenny inspired Ray to develop his boxing skills at young age. After impressive amateur career, he turned pro in 1978. He became world lightweight champion by 1st round knockout vs Arturo Frias on May 8, 1982 in Las Vegas. The highlight of Manicini’s Career.

Watch the Video of Ray Mancini vs Arturo Frias

Challenger: Duk Koo Kim

Duk Koo Kim’s age is controversial. His WBA record indicates that he was 23-years-old (January 8, 1959) at the time but actual birth date is August 10, 1956. Kim lost his father at the age 2. Kim began boxing to escape poverty. Boxing was his one-way ticket to fame and fortune. He won 12 straight fight and assigned by the WBA as the world’s number 1 challenger to Ray Mancini. It was his first fight outside of Asia. His purse for the fight was only $20,000.

Before the Fight

Kim struggled to meet the Lightweight’s 135 pound limit and had to sweat off excess weight before the game. Kim was huge underdog against star Ray Mancini. Many predicted Kim would not last more than 3 rounds.

The Tragedy Fight

Against all odds, the fight turned out to be an actioned packed fight. Kim proving that he was a worthy challenger. They went toe to toe until 11th round. Mancini tool control of the game starting 12th round. In the 14th round, Mancini’s straight right knock Kim flat on his back. Kim struggled to get up and later collapsed moments after the fight in his corner. Kim sustained brain damages and slipped into coma that led to his death five days later at Desert Springs Hospital.

Watch the video Mancini vs Kim

The Aftermath

• Kim’s mother committed suicide four months after the fight.

• Referee for the fight, Richard Greene also committed suicide in 1983.

• Kim’s pregnant girlfriend changed her name and living in undisclosed location.

• Word boxing organizations began operating 12-round championship bouts instead of 15

• Some state adopted the standing eight count and the referee giving the mandatory eight count.

• Mancini went to the funeral in South Korea, but he fell into a deep depression afterwards. Mancini struggled with Kim’s death and he was not the Ray Mancini that attracted fans. He lost his title to Livingstone Bramble in 1984 and retired early from boxing to pursue acting career in Hollywood.

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Video: Ray Boom Boom Mancini vs Duk Koo Kim Final Rounds.

Video: Ray Mancini vs Duk Koo Kim that includes Mancini interview.

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Martina Hingis Retires after Testing Positive for Cocaine

Former World No. 1 tennis player Martina Hingis decided to end her sporting career after she has reportedly tested positive for using cocaine during this year’s Wimbledon tournament.

The 27-year-old Swiss denied that she ever used drugs. Instead, she suggested that somebody from her entourage may have “viciously” poured the substance in a spiked fruit drink and then handed it to her.

Hingis won five Grand Slam tournaments and retired from tennis in 2002 just to make a come back two years ago. Nevertheless, this season she has struggled with a hip injury. She lost in the third round at Wimbledon to Laura Granville, 6-4, 6-2.

“I am frustrated and angry. I believe that I am absolutely, 100 percent innocent,” she said.

Hingis said she was accused by “an outsource testing company” of taking cocaine during Wimbledon. She said she was “shocked and appalled” when notified that her urine sample came back positive after the loss to Granville.

“They say that cocaine increases self-confidence and creates a type of euphoria,” she said in a statement. “I don’t know. I only know that if I were to try to hit the ball while in any state of euphoria, it simply wouldn’t work. “I would think that it would be impossible for anyone to maintain the coordination required to play top class tennis while under the influence of drugs. And I know one other thing — I would personally be terrified of taking drugs.”

Hingis said the positive test, which could lead to a doping suspension of up to two years, led to her retirement because she doesn’t want to spend years fighting the case.

The test was on June 29 but that Hingis heard about the positive result in mid-September and the positive ‘B’ sample two or three weeks later.

WTA Tour chief executive Larry Scott said the tour had not received any official information about a positive test and “as a result we are not in a position to comment on the matter.”

“However, it is important to remember that in the area of anti-doping, all players are presumed innocent until proven otherwise,” Scott said.

Former top-ranked player Mats Wilander and Karel Novacek had positive tests for cocaine at the 1995 French Open. Both were banned for three months and ordered to return prize money and forfeit rankings points.

Others have tested positive for a variety of banned substances.

Martina Hingis’s Career

On March 31, 1997, Hingis became the youngest female player ever to lead the world rankings. She was 16 years, 6 months and 1 day at the time. She is currently ranked No. 19.

She won three straight Australian Open titles from 1997-99, and Wimbledon and the U.S. Open championships in 1997. She came within one match of winning the Grand Slam in 1997, losing only in the French Open final.

Hingis, who lost in the third round of the U.S. Open, hasn’t played since her second-round loss to Peng Shuai of China, 7-5, 6-1, in Beijing on Sept. 19.

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Preakness winner Curlin splashed his way to victory in muddy Breeders’ Cup Classic at Monmouth Park, Oceanport, NJ

Curlin, the Preakness winner, moved into contention around the final turn and swept past Hard Spun and Lawyer Ron before a cheering crowd of 41,781 that had endured a rain deluge most of the day.

In a meteoric rise to stardom, Curlin capped a sensational campaign by once again defeating Kentucky Derby winner Street Sense as well as leading older horse Lawyer Ron and all his other 3-year-old rivals. Trained by Steve Asmussen, Curlin won for the sixth time in nine starts, has never been worse than third and likely will be voted Horse of the Year.

“He showed he’s a true champion,” jockey Robby Albarado said. “He’s an amazing horse.”

Curlin, coming off a victory over Lawyer Ron in the Jockey Club Gold Cup, finished 4½ lengths ahead of Hard Spun, with long shot Awesome Gem third and Street Sense fourth.

The big chestnut colt covered the 1¼ miles in a speedy 2:00.59 over a sloppy track and returned $10.80, $5.20 and $4.20. The track record is 2:00 2/5 set in 1962 by Carry Back.

Hard Spun, the Derby runner-up who came into the race with a win over Street Sense in the Kentucky Cup Classic, returned $7.60 and $5.80. Awesome Gem returned $9.40 to show.

For Street Sense, the loss was tough to take in the final race of his brilliant career.

“I had no excuse. I had nothing but racetrack in front of me,” said Street Sense jockey Calvin Borel. “We just got outrun. I’m sad to see him go, but he’s going off to be a dad now.”

Off the track, the Curlin controversy carries on.

The imposing son of Smart Strike was purchased privately for $57,000 by William Gallion and Shirley Cunningham Jr., who are currently in jail on charges of conspiring to commit wire fraud in the diet drug fen-phen case. They sold controlling interest of the colt in February for a reported $3.5 million to a group composed of Jess Jackson, founder of Kendall-Jackson wines; Satish Sanan’s Padua Stables; and George Bolton.

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European star horse George Washington fractured his cannon bone at the end of Breeders’ Cup Classic

The Breeders’ Cup Classic was marred in the final yards when European star George Washington Broke down and was euthanized on the track.

Jockey Mick Kinane pulled up George Washington at the rear of the nine-horse field as Curlin dashed to a 4½-length victory on the sloppy track at Monmouth Park.

George Washington fractured his cannon bone and was euthanized on the track at the request of trainer Aidan O’Brien, according to Dr. Larry Bramlage, the on-call veterinarian. “That’s a hopeless injury,” he said.

In the Preakness, Kentucky Derby winner Barbaro broke his leg early in the race and was euthanized eight months later. George Washington shared a tragic connection with Barbaro.

The European colt was bred by Roy and Gretchen Jackson, who owned Barbaro and spent millions of dollars trying to keep him alive. On the same day Barbaro won the Derby, George Washington won the 2000 Guineas, the opening leg of the English classics.

As George Washington skittered a few steps while lifting up his injured leg, workers rushed to him and surrounded the 4-year-old colt with brown screens that blocked the view of the crowd. A horse ambulance quickly appeared and maneuvered into position as 41,781 fans watched in silence. The workers managed to load George Washington into the ambulance under the cover of the screens.

Ironically, George Washington wasn’t supposed to be racing anymore. He was retired at the end of last year with plans to go to stud, but was found to be infertile and put back into training.

He won six of 13 career starts and earned more than $1.4 million racing mostly in Europe for owners Susan Magnier of Ireland and Englishmen Michael Tabor and Derrick Smith.

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Breeders Cup Classic 2007 Features Preakness winner Curlin and Kentucky Derby winner Street Sense.

The best of the best at Breeders’ Cup. The Classic field features the first three Derby finishers — Street Sense, Hard Spun and Curlin — for the first time, as well as seventh- and eighth-place finishers Tiago and Any Given Saturday. Saturday’s $5 million Classic at Monmouth Park, a race that will determine Horse of the Year honors.

Street Sense, who never has raced at Monmouth, starts from post 2. He is surrounded by a tag team from trainer Todd Pletcher. Mr. Inside is Lawyer Ron, the best older horse in the country. Mr. Outside is Any Given Saturday, the winner of the Haskell Invitational here this summer.

Lawyer Ron, the winner of the Whitney and Woodward, figures to be on or near the early lead, along with Hard Spun, who starts from post 8. Lawyer Ron was second to Curlin in the Jockey Club Gold Cup at Belmont Park, and was second in the Salvator Mile in his only previous start on this track.

“The great thing about this Classic is everybody involved in championship honors is here,” said trainer Todd Pletcher, who has two of the nine horses in the Classic, favorite Lawyer Ron and Any Given Saturday. “What better place to decide it than right here on the racetrack.”

Despite the wet weather in forecast, officials still expect 45,000 to fight traffic and show up at the track on the Jersey Shore, which underwent major renovations to get ready for its first Breeders’ Cup.

“There are so many types of wet tracks, we’ll just have to wait and see what it’s like,” Pletcher said.

Twice before in the 24-year history of the Breeders’ Cup has the track come up muddy, the most recent when Cigar won the Classic at Belmont Park in 1995.

Favorite Horse to win: Street Sense

Street Sense won the Kentucky Derby on May 5, 2007, ridden by 40-year-old Calvin Borel, the rail-hugging jockey. He rallied from a 19th place (second-to-last deficit) to beat Hard Spun by 2 1/2 lengths. Street Sense finished second in the Preakness Stakes at Pimlico Race Course on May 19, 2007. Lost to Curlin by a nose in a photo finish.

Street Sense jockey Calvin Borel says “the more it rains the better he’ll like it.”

Monmouth Park Race Track Oceanport, NJ 07757

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12 PM/ET October, 27, 2007 on ESPN Horse Racing

Breeders Cup Official web site.

Monmouth Park Race Track

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