Paramedics responded to a call from a hotel in Riviera Beach, Florida, early yesterday morning, gossip website TMZ.com has reported.
The 34-year-old's father apparently told the website that his daughter is 'recovering well'.
Capriati, who was dubbed the 'Can't Miss Kid' by the American press for her sizzling talent, won 14 career titles, including three Grand Slams.
But her astonishing ability on the court was always tempered by a troubled story of drug abuse, binge-eating, insecurity and thoughts of suicide.
Pushed by her parents - particularly her father - she turned professional at age 13.
By her 15th birthday she was reckoned to have landed licensing and endorsement deals worth £10 million.
But she wanted to be a normal teenager - a fact her mother accepted sadly years later.
'Jennifer went from being happy to sad and fearful, and as a parent I felt plenty of guilt and shame for the role I played in that,' she said.
'The money, the excitement, the endorsements, the pride - you get caught up in it, and you're not thinking of what your child is missing, and if this is what's best for them.'
The teenager began rebelling against her father's strict discipline, with incidents of shop-lifting in 1993 and drugs.
Rejecting tennis completely, she gained weight and spun off the rails.
She was charged with cannabis possession in 1994 and spent time in a drug rehabilitation clinic - then spent two years struggling to get back into the game.
Consumed by self-loathing, she contemplated suicide. 'When I looked in the mirror I actually saw this distorted image,' she later recalled. 'I was so ugly and fat I just wanted to kill myself really.
'At the end of a match, I couldn't wait to get off court. Mentally, I'd just lost it. I wasn't happy with myself, my tennis, my life, my coaches, my friends.'
By age 25, however, she had battled back from the abyss. In October, 2001 she claimed the World No 1 ranking after a series of victories.
Story courtesy of Daily Mail
0 comments:
Post a Comment