Now, Sellers says he's back

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Shane Sellers, who in late August announced that he was retiring from a sensational career as a jockey, reversed course Saturday when he revealed that he plans to begin riding again at the end of this month.

Sellers, 36, hopes to return early in the Churchill Downs fall meet, which begins Oct. 27. Making his return more notable, Sellers has hired Fred Aime as his agent. Aime was a highly successful agent for Hall of Fame jockey Pat Day for 10 years before the pair split in 1995.

A return to action would be the second for Sellers since he suffered a major knee injury in a post-parade incident at the Fair Grounds in December 2000. He returned briefly at the 2001 Arlington Park meet but stopped riding because of incessant pain in the knee.

In the year since then, Sellers has waffled about whether or not he would attempt to return. After lengthy rehabilitation, he was intent on returning this summer, but he abandoned that comeback attempt in late August when saying he was "fed up" with how his knee had not fully recovered and with other concerns.

Aime said Saturday that Sellers, who began his career at age 16 in his native Louisiana, has a burning desire to stay in the game. "The knee is feeling good again," said Aime, 51. "Shane and I believe we both have a good five to 10 years left in us. We both left the game when we were at the top, and we both feel like we can get back there."

Sellers began exercising horses at Arlington Park on Saturday and will continue working there for the next couple of weeks, said Aime.

Sellers has won more than 3,700 races, including two in the Breeders' Cup, along with riding titles at Keeneland, Churchill Downs, Arlington, Gulfstream Park, and other tracks.