To All Rail Birds, Affirmed was euthanized at age 26. I think that makes Seattle Slew the only living Triple Crown winner. The duel between Affirmed and Alydar was one of the most exciting in history. Affirmed won all three, but the total margin of victory was incredibly close. He was a pretty good stud, but never produced a horse as good as he was. Alydar got the better of him on that score. Alydar died earlier and many think he was murdered. Or was that his kid, Alysheba? I can't remember right now.
It turned out that Chris Antley was probably not murdered and his death was regular old drug abuse. It is sad, but all the stories were that he had deep mental problems. He was a terrific jockey and you can't take away those Kentucky Derby and Preakness wins on longshot, Charismatic. The one I still remember is the one he lost, where Charismatic had a bone poking out of his shin and still finished third. Antley jumped from the horse to try to take the weight off him. He fell on his butt on the track. To tell you the truth, I was one of those who thought he was all doped up when I saw that. When I learned the truth later, I was kind of ashamed. Now, I am wondering again. Anyway, I was sorry to see a great athlete die this way. What a waste. |
