By James Waterson Photo Credit: Matthew Chamlin
(July 9, 2011) Eight-time Grand Slam champion and Olympic gold medal winner Andre Agassi received the highest honor in tennis when he was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame Saturday.
Agassi was the only inductee in the “Recent Player” category. He was inducted along with Fern Lee “Peachy” Kellmeyer, a tennis industry executive who was the first person to be hired by the WTA in 1973.
“Andre Agassi and Peachy Kellmeyer have achieved extraordinary success in their tennis careers, while improving the lives of so many, said Christopher Clouser, International Tennis Hall of Fame & Museum chairman.
“We are very pleased to recognize their hard work and great accomplishments with the highest honor in tennis— induction to the International Tennis Hall of Fame,” Coulser said.
Agassi turned professional in 1986, when he was 16 years old. He won his first tour title in 1987, and over his almost 20 year career he compiled 60 titles, an 870-274 record and completed the career Grand Slam. He also held the No. 1 spot for 101 weeks and won two Davis Cup titles (in 1990 and 1992).
Outside of tennis, Agassi is known for his philanthropic works. In 1994, he started the Andre Agassi Foundation for Education, an organization which is dedicated to reforming public education in the United States.
In 2001, he founded the Andre Agassi College Preparatory Academy, a tuition-free public charter school in Las Vegas most at-risk neighborhood whose goal is to “offer academic programs designed to enhance a child's character, respect, motivation and self-discipline,” according to the school’s website.
He is married to fellow Grand-Slam champion Steffi Graf, and they live with their two children in Las Vegas.
Sean Rudolph, a contributor to Tennis Now, talked to Agassi and Graf about their family, coaches, the sport and if Graff will speak at Agassi’s induction ceremony. You can read that interview here.