Andre Agassi
Tennis ace and philanthropist
Andre Agassi was born into a sports-loving family in Las Vegas on April 29, 1970. Tennis played a central role in his life right from the start. His father, a former Iranian boxer, encouraged Agassi's sporting talent from an early age, laying the foundations for an extraordinary career.
Agassi is one of the most influential figures in the tennis world. He is known for his sporting successes as well as his social commitment. During his impressive career, he won eight Grand Slam titles and an Olympic gold medal, making him one of only eight players to have won all four Grand Slam tournaments. But Agassi is not only an icon on the tennis court. He founded the Andre Agassi Foundation for Education and is actively committed to improving the educational opportunities of disadvantaged children.
Want to see Andre Agassi live? Then come to ISPO Munich 2024, where the tennis ace will be speaking on the Main Stage on the topic of Success & Responsibility in Sports: The Role Model Andre Agassi You shouldn't miss this:
Andre Agassi's career is characterized by a total of eight Grand Slam titles and 101 weeks at the top of the world rankings. The highlight of his career came in 1999, when he won a dramatic final against Andriy Medvedev at the French Open after trailing in two sets. With this victory, he completes the rare career Grand Slam, i.e. winning all four major tennis tournaments, and is also the 1996 Olympic champion in his own country. This impressive success secured him a place among the greatest tennis players of all time.
In 2006, after 20 years in professional tennis, Agassi ended his career at the US Open. In tears and accompanied by standing ovations, he bids farewell to the big stage of tennis after losing in the third round of the competition. His tireless fighting spirit and his extraordinary performances ensure that he remains a tennis legend.
The Andre Agassi Foundation for Education was founded in 1994 by Andre Agassi with the aim of providing children from disadvantaged backgrounds with better educational opportunities. The foundation is particularly committed to building educational programs in Agassi's hometown of Las Vegas, Nevada, with a strong focus on the long-term potential of education as a means to counteract social inequalities.
Through his foundation, Andre Agassi has raised and invested over 185 million dollars to create sustainable educational opportunities. He sees education as the key to improving the long-term living conditions of children and giving them the opportunity to shape their future successfully. Thanks to Agassi's sporting success on the pitch and his social commitment off the pitch, his name is now synonymous not only with his athletic achievements, but also with remarkable philanthropic successes.
One of the foundation's outstanding projects is the Andre Agassi College Preparatory Academy, a charter school that opened in 2001. It offers children from underprivileged backgrounds a high-quality education from elementary school through to high school. Thanks to innovative educational approaches and the Foundation's support, many graduates are given the chance to continue their education at university - an opportunity that is often not a given for pupils from difficult social backgrounds.
Agassi's autobiography"Open", which was published in 2009, is considered one of the most honest and poignant sports biographies. In the book, he talks openly about his struggles with sporting pressure, his difficult relationship with his strict father and his drug problems."Open" has been praised worldwide and gives many fans a new perspective on Agassi as a person who, despite his successes, had to overcome numerous challenges. In the 1990s, Agassi struggled with both personal and professional difficulties. In his autobiography, he admits that he lost his love for tennis during this time and even used crystal meth at times. He dropped to 141st in the world rankings, but made an impressive comeback and became world number 1 again in 1999.
Unlike many players who experience their best years in their 20s, Agassi was particularly successful in the later stages of his career. He won five of his eight Grand Slam titles after the age of 29, underlining his exceptional fitness and mental strength. To this day, he remains one of the oldest players ever to be ranked No. 1 in the world.
Andre Agassi and Steffi Graf have been married since 2001 and have both had impressive tennis careers with numerous Grand Slam titles as well as the rare career Grand Slam. Their relationship began after Agassi's divorce, and they married in a private ceremony in Las Vegas. They have two children, Jaden and Jaz, and lead a rather secluded life. They focus on their family and each support their own foundations. As a duo, they inaugurated the new center court at Wimbledon in 2009 with a tennis match against Tim Henman and Kim Clijsters.
Want to see Andre Agassi live? Then come to ISPO Munich 2024, where the tennis ace will be speaking on the Main Stage on the topic of Success & Responsibility in Sports: The Role Model Andre Agassi You shouldn't miss this:
Date of birth | April 29, 1970 |
Place of birth | Las Vegas, USA |
Start of career | 1986 |
Grand Slam titles | 8 (4x Australian Open, 1x French Open, 1x Wimbledon, 2x US Open) |
Olympic victories | 1 (Atlanta 1996) |
Time as world number one | 101 weeks |
End of career | 2006 |
