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WIMBLEDON, England (AP) — Andre Agassi will retire after this year’s U.S. Open, leaving tennis after two decades during which he collected a career Grand Slam and morphed from "Image Is Everything" brashness to elder statesman.
The 36-year-old American announced his plans Saturday during a news conference at the All England Club, where Wimbledon starts Monday and he is seeded 25th.
"It’s been a lot of sacrifices the last few months, trying to get myself right to come back here and enjoy this tournament for the last time," said Agassi, who has played only one match during the past three months because of back trouble.
"It’s been a long road this year for me, and for a lot of reasons. It’s great to be here. This Wimbledon will be my last, and the U.S. Open will be my last tournament."
He intends to play in four hard-court events in the United States between Wimbledon and the Open, in what will amount to a farewell tour for one of the most popular and successful tennis players in history.
US Today
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Yes it’s true — I’m told Jake Gyllenhaal and Lance Armstrong are hanging at the Tour De France together because the actor is the leading contender to play the cyclist in a Sony bio pic being quietly developed. Gyllenhaal and Armstrong have become pals during Jake’s method process to get to know the sports legend. The actor of Brokeback Mountain and Jarhead fame is even a long-time cyclist and has begun training for the film. As a huge TdF fan myself, I think a Lance bio-pic is a natural: why did it take Hollywood so long to put one together? Given Armstrong’s unhappy youth, his sports prowess (first as a triathlete and then as a cyclist), his cancer battle, his Live Strong yellow wristband campaign and his cancer foundation work, his epic seven TdF titles, his rivalry with cocky Jan Ullrich and upstart Ivan Basso, his love-hate relationship with the French, and his battle against doping accusations, it’s a heckuva tale. And the studio as well as Lance are fortunate that an Oscar nominee like Gyllenhaal wants to do it. There’s even a slight resemblance between the two men, as seen in these close-ups.
