"Steffi Graf did not have to give up her family... I had no friends and no mom": When Andre Agassi clarified misconceptions about his wife's childhood
Andre Agassi once shed light on the differences between his and his wife Steffi Graf's early experiences with tennis. Agassi also addressed the misconceptions about Graf's upbringing, dispelling the concerns about her father Peter robbing her of her childhood.
Agassi and Graf shared a special connection through their similar introductions to tennis, as they were both pushed into the sport by their fathers. The German's father Peter, an aspiring tennis coach, handed her a tennis racket at the age of three and remained her coach for much of her illustrious career, during which she won 22 Grand Slam titles.
Similarly, Andre Agassi was coached by his father Emmanuel "Mike" Agassi during his childhood in Las Vegas. However, by the time he turned 13, Mike admitted that he had "nothing left to teach him" and sent the American away to Nick Bollettieri's academy in Florida to train and hone his skills.
Andre Agassi and Steffi Graf bonded over their shared experience of being under their respective fathers' "hands." In a 2009 interview with German publication Spiegel, the American revealed that Graf was the only person who validated his feelings of "hating" tennis.
"What is right is that both of us were in our fathers' hands. I told a lot of people that I hated tennis -- seriously and strongly hated it -- and they all tried to talk me out of it: "Ah, that is not right, Andre; in fact you love tennis, don't you?" Do you want to know what Stefanie said: "Don't we all?,"" Andre Agassi said.
However, when asked about Peter Graf's reputation as a 'diabolical father who stole his daughter's childhood,' Andre Agassi pushed back against the misconception, insisting that this image was "wrong."
The American also emphasized that it was Graf's decision to pursue tennis, asserting that she didn't have to sacrifice her family or childhood in the process. In contrast, Agassi admitted that being sent to Nick Bollettieri's academy by his father at the age of just 13 left him isolated, with no friends and separated from his mother.
"But it wasn't like that. It was her choice. Stefanie did not have to give up her family or her childhood, whereas I was sent to a training academy in Florida. And, from that moment on, I had no friends and no mom anymore. No, this story and this image are wrong. Of course, sometimes she was sick of it; but, in general, she loved the sport she happened to be great at," he said.
Andre Agassi on training at Nick Bollettieri's academy: "I did what I needed to do because that's what Pops wanted... I called it a glorified prison camp"
In a 2009 interview with Oprah.com, Andre Agassi disclosed that his hatred for tennis stemmed from being sent away to Nick Bollettieri's academy at 13 years old, as it interfered with his relationship with his father.
"That's why I hated it. Tennis interfered with my relationship with my father, and it interfered with the relationship with myself. I think when somebody doesn't have a choice, they never feel connected to their life. It doesn't matter if they're good at it or not," Andre Agassi said.
The American also shed light on his difficult experience at the academy, describing it as a "glorified prison camp" where teenagers were left to raise themselves.
"As a little boy, I internalized and did what I needed to do because that's what Pops wanted. I got sent away to a tennis academy when I was 13 years old. I called it a glorified prison camp and refer to it as Lord of the Flies with forehands. It was a bunch of these teenagers raising themselves, deciding the pecking order. It was primal and primitive," he said.
Despite the hardships Andre Agassi endured at the academy, Nick Bollettieri played a pivotal role in his career, coaching the American to his maiden Grand Slam title at the 1992 Wimbledon Championships.