According to the Los Angeles Times tennis great Andre Agassi admitted that he used crystal meth back in 1997 in a book he has coming out shortly titled: “Open: An Autobiography” .

The following is an excerpt from the memoir:

“Slim dumps a small pile of powder on the coffee table. He cuts it, snorts it. He cuts it again. I snort some. I ease back on the couch and consider the Rubicon I’ve just crossed. There is a moment of regret, followed by vast sadness. Then comes a tidal wave of euphoria that sweeps away every negative thought in my head. I’ve never felt so alive, so hopeful — and I’ve never felt such energy. I’m seized by a desperate desire to clean. I go tearing around my house, cleaning it from top to bottom. I dust the furniture. I scour the tub. I make the beds…”

Later, Agassi tests positive for the drug and potentially faces public suspension along with media attention and embarrassment. He explains how he gets himself out of it:

“My name, my career, everything is now on the line. Whatever I’ve achieved, whatever I’ve worked for, might soon mean nothing. Days later I sit in a hard-backed chair, a legal pad in my lap, and write a letter to the ATP. It’s filled with lies interwoven with bits of truth. I say Slim, whom I’ve since fired, is a known drug user, and that he often spikes his sodas with meth — which is true. Then I come to the central lie of the letter. I say that recently I drank accidentally from one of Slim’s spiked sodas, unwittingly ingesting his drugs. I ask for understanding and leniency and hastily sign it: Sincerely. I feel ashamed, of course. I promise myself that this lie is the end of it.”

With what I’ve been reading on the net, a lot of people are questioning why he is even bringing it up since he got away with it. I think his last sentence says it all – he felt ashamed. It doesn’t matter how much time goes by, a good person is going to feel not so good about themselves if they’re carrying around a lie until they rectify the situation however they deem necessary. I may be completely wrong, but that would be my guess.

Jordasche Bledsoe