Monday, August 25, 2003
Goodbye to a great champion
Pete Sampras formally bade the world of tennis goodbye last night in an emotional ceremony at the U.S. Open. I first became a big tennis fan after watching the 1985 Wimbledon final between Boris Becker and Kevin Curran. Earlier, I had been content to watch videos of the great Bjorg-McEnroe, McEnroe-Connors games, but Becker brought something to the game I found very exciting. I thought Becker was one hell of a great player, but all that was before I first watched Pete Sampras in 1990. The more I watched him, the more I was blown away by his game. And then, there was that incredible final against Agassi last year. Yes, I do think he is the greatest player ever, though I'll admit I havent watched that much of Rod Laver, Ken Rosewall etc.
To me, Pete Sampras represents everything that is great about American sports and sportsmen. Now, if only you could convince the powers-that-be that Sampras as a role model would be a far better idea than those numerous basketball and football players who seem to spend at least as much time getting into trouble as being on the playing field.
To me, Pete Sampras represents everything that is great about American sports and sportsmen. Now, if only you could convince the powers-that-be that Sampras as a role model would be a far better idea than those numerous basketball and football players who seem to spend at least as much time getting into trouble as being on the playing field.
