Lucien Laurin, the irascible French Canadian who trained Secretariat to win the 1973 Triple Crown and two consecutive Horse of the Year titles, died Monday morning at a Miami hospital. He was 88.

	Hall of Fame trainer Lucien Laurin, shown in this 1973 file photo, who saddled Secretariat to the Triple Crown in 1973, died Monday at 88.

Laurin, who was elected to the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in 1977, was admitted to Baptist Hospital last week after he injured himself in a fall at his home in Key Largo, Fla. The hospital reported that Laurin died Monday morning after complications following surgery to repair a broken hip.

"We were the best of friends," said Penny Chenery, the owner of Secretariat and 1972 Kentucky Derby and Belmont Stakes winner Riva Ridge, who were both trained by Laurin.

"And he was a money trainer," Chenery said Monday. "He could really get horses ready for big races."

Laurin came to train Secretariat and the horses of Meadow Stable after Roger Laurin, his son, gave up the Meadow job to take over the reins of the Ogden Phipps stable, one of the most prestigious jobs in the country, in 1971. Chenery asked Roger to recommend a replacement, and the loyal son recommended his father, who was nearly retired at the time.

Chenery initially balked, fearing that the notoriously ill-tempered Laurin would talk down to her, but with several good 2-year-olds in the barn and time running short, she decided to take Roger's advice, with the intention of finding a more agreeable trainer down the road.

"I don't think Lucien planned on doing it long either, but then he was so competitive that once he took the job he was never going to give it up," Chenery said.

By the end of 1971, Riva Ridge was the 2-year-old champion, and reports were coming from the farm in Virginia about a promising yearling by Bold Ruler out of the Nasrullah mare Somethingroyal. In 1972, Riva Ridge captured the Kentucky Derby and Belmont Stakes while the son of Bold Ruler, Secretariat, ran through a Horse of the Year campaign, igniting hopes that Triple Crown would be won in 1973 for the first time in 25 years.

Secretariat, with Ron Turcotte in the saddle, fulfilled the promise that had been heaped on his back, winning all three races of the 1973 Triple Crown and taking the Belmont Stakes by 31 lengths in one of the most memorable performances in racing history.

"He put a lot of confidence in me," Turcotte said on Monday. "That in turn put a lot of confidence in the horses. How many trainers do you know that really listen to their jocks? I can count them on one hand. He was one of them."

Like Turcotte, Laurin was born and raised in Quebec, Canada, and he took pride in his home country and his French-Canadian upbringing. He began training at New England tracks in 1942 and later trained for Reginald Webster and A.B. "Bull" Hancock Jr.

When Laurin finally retired from training in 1987, he had 36 stakes winners and three champions: Riva Ridge, Secretariat, and 1958 2-year-old filly champion Quill.

"What people forget, something I never read in the papers, is how good Lucien was with 2-year-olds," Turcotte said. "That's the sign of a great trainer, someone who can put a great bottom on a horse."

Although his work with Secretariat would be his greatest legacy, almost equally famous on racetrack backstretches was Laurin's fiery temper and nearly daily tirades.

"He had a terrible temper, that's true," Chenery said. "But he was a perfectionist, and if people weren't as precise as him or as hard working, he'd stomp and yell. But he was so loveable. And he wanted a happy barn, with happy people."

"If he had one fault, it was his temper," Turcotte said. "But he just hated to lose."