in case anyone's interested in the more complete qoutes:

It was a shock when I heard the news. I am disappointed and I hope there are no more such cases in future," Federer said at a sponsors meeting at Kilchberg near Zurich.
But Federer also noted that Agassi "has done a lot for tennis, both as a player and as a human being".
"Today, he raises millions of dollars for his foundation for disadvantaged children," the Swiss ace commented
********
If the ATP covered for Agassi at the time then I think that's dreadful," Nadal said in Madrid as he prepared to receive a civic award.

"The only thing I can say is that if they covered at that moment for the player and punished others for doing the same kind of thing then that would seem to me to be a lack of respect for all sportsmen."Nadal concluded that "cheats have to be punished" and said he could not understand why Agassi "now that he is retired comes out and says this - it's a way of senselessly damaging the sport".

******************

No official word yet from the ATP unless I've missed it. They are the biggest culprits in all this, because they have now planted suspicion in the minds of the public that tennis has lots of skeletons in its cupboard, and probably don't now appreciate the players at face value.

What a shame!!!!!!!

That is exactly what I thought Rafa would say. And he's right. Why senselessly hurt the sport? Makes no sense.

found another part of Roger's qoute,and unlike Rafa he thinks that "this was better than keeping it to himself",RF also suggests that these things are under better control now.

like Roger,I had initially thought it was a good idea to confess,but now I agree more with Rafa. AA hurt the sport.
but Cheryl,could this confession prevent ATP from such things in the future? do you think there could be a positive effect?

niloofar - I don't think there will be any positive effects, actually. The ATP doesn't have anything to do with drug testing anymore. WADA does it, and they are an independent body which has nothing to do with tennis. They don't care if the guy they're testing is Roger Federer or Paul-Henry Mathieu because they have no stake in it. The problem is that most people don't know that, and they're going to think that Rafa and Roger have a similar Svengali effect on the ATP

Cheryl, that's why I think a statement from the ATP to clear this up is badly needed.

Carrie, they're still too busy pretending that it didn't happen.

Cheryl...thanks for the reply,I'm from a country where "an independant body" doesn't make sense at all,so I suspect maybe they do consider the benefit of ATP or whatever.but hopefully I'm wrong and these things are different from my country.

Cheryl and Carrie: you're both so right. The ATP handed over doping control to WADA in 2006, and it is good to have an independent body monitoring doping control in any sport rather than the players' own body. When representation clashes with regulation, trouble abounds.

But thanks to the Agassi revelations, there are big questions surrounding the years and decades up to 2006. Roger Federer rightly hopes there are no other stories. Well, On one level, I suppose there are only so many legends of yesteryear whose confessions might interest the general public in shelling out for a book. Thus I think we might not expect the floodgates to open at this stage. But the ATP tour has had so many members over the decades. There must be considerable suspicion regarding the ATP's handling of doping matters prior to WADA's involvement.

Andre Agassi has questions to answer over this revelation. But so does the ATP. It might help if we could see a statement on their web-site in the immediate future. But I am not holding my breath.

It's all moot, in my opinion.

No matter what happened then and what happens next, Agassi's revelation has cast an enormous web and shadow of doubt and suspicion over ATP AND tennis in general. Like it or not, people are going to start speculating about current players and as I have mentioned in Cheryl's blog, this whole thing has given WADA and ITF the one huge irrefutable reason they need to implement even more restrictive drug tests on players given that ATP was mega fail in doping rules.

Roger and Rafa aren't the only ones disappointed. Probably the whole tennis community is.

Cheryl (and Rafa) - I highly doubt Agassi did this to "senselessly hurt the sport."

He probably did it for his own conscience. Tired of having all these skeletons in his closet. (Halloween-themed pun intende)

OH NO!! Not Agassi!! I wish I didn't know. However, it would have probably been revealed eventually by someone, so better that he was honest now. I won't buy the book now. I hope this does not encourage others to use drugs.... why screw up your brain cells and body?? So irresponsible. I beleive it can serioulsy affect the body and brain mechanics in later years too, even after you have stopped. I even worry about the players drinking alcohol while they are participating in tournements, especially those held during high temperature weather...
Well, Agassi is brave and I wish him well.

'He probably did it for his own conscience' ...
I seriously doubt it Ricky.... I think he did it to sell the book... I might b wrong obviously... but even if he did this Bcoz of conscience, it was a wrong course of action.... May b he didnt mean to damage the sport, but its damaging for tennis anyway. Many tennis players were trying to change the way WADA treats them... now they will have very little to say for themselves.....

ekattor - he didn't do it just for ONE reason.

"he did it to sell the book" is OBVIOUSLY the No. 1 reason. That goes without saying.

disagree ricky...he doesnt need the money...an extra 2 million would mean nothing to him when he can live off the interest of his millions for the rest of his life without even dipping in....to the millions he already has made.....go watch his videolink.....by chris chase.....who interviewed agassi about his book.....have posted on the other thread.....the guy needed atonement and forgiveness....its obvious....

the ATP cannot do anything about it....it is the independent body which could bring an investigation, and what's the point after all this time? Plus they are barred now by the statute of limitations.......

adding to niloofar's post earlier....this is roddick's full take on the matter...and i kind of agree with him and with roger......the only person agassi cheated is himself.....he has to live with that.....and now that he has given his confession.....i would imagine...a clearer conscience for him....redemption.....in his own mind....

Federer, Nadal upset at Agassi drug taking
Thu Oct 29, 2009 7:20pm EDT

By Simon Evans
MIAMI (Reuters) - Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal both voiced their displeasure at Andre Agassi after the former world number one revealed he took the recreational drug crystal meth in 1997 and lied about the reasons for a positive test.
"To me it seems terrible," world number two Nadal said at an awards ceremony in Madrid on Thursday. "Why is he saying this now that he has retired?
"It's a way of damaging the sport that makes no sense.
"I believe our sport is clean and I am the first one that wants that.
"Cheaters must be punished and if Agassi was a cheater during his career he should have been punished."
World number one Roger Federer, who beat Agassi in the final of the 2005 U.S. Open, also spoke of his sadness at the eight times major winner's admission in his new autobiography "Open."
"It was a shock when I heard the news." Federer said at a sponsors meeting at Kilchberg near Zurich.
"I am disappointed and I hope there are no more such cases in future.... our sport must stay clean."
AMERICAN Defense
However Agassi found support at home with fellow American and Wimbledon finalist Andy Roddick saying the 39-year-old remained his hero despite the revelations.
Roddick, the leading U.S. men's player who lost to Federer in this year's Wimbledon final, was one of many compatriots who remained unfazed by Agassi's admissions.
"Andre is and always will be my idol. I will judge him on how he has treated me and how he has changed the world for (the) better," Roddick wrote on his Twitter page.
Roddick said Agassi's letter to the ATP, in which he told the governing body he had failed a drugs test because his drink had been spiked, came at a time when the player was far from his peak.
"To be fair, when Andre wrote the reported letter, he was well outside the top 100 and widely viewed as on the way out," said Roddick.
BOOK COMING OUT
Women's world number two Serena Williams reacted to the news by plugging her own book.
"I don't even know what crystal meth is so, you know, that's what my reaction to it is. I haven't read anything about Andre Agassi's book. All I know is that I have a book coming out," she told reporters at the WTA Championships in Doha.
Serena's sister Venus, the world number seven, added: "His book will probably sell. It seems very interesting, to say the least."
U.S. media has been restrained in its response to Agassi's admissions, which have appeared in excerpts from the book.
The New York Times noted Agassi was able to bounce back from his dark spell and enjoy a successful end to his career.
"The question is: Might it all have turned out differently without Agassi's reprieve from the doping panel, without his lie?" it asked referring to the five majors he won after 1997.
However, CBS columnist Ray Ratto questioned the motive behind Agassi's revelations.
"We're not here to kick a guy now that he's back up, although in fairness we've always found honesty to be more refreshing when it doesn't come at $31.99 a copy."

Ricky, neither Rafa nor myself thinks that he did it with the sole intent of embarrassing the sport, but the fact is that his revelations DID do that. I don't know about Rafa, but my point is that he clearly didn't care enough NOT to do it. If you know what I mean...

people rarely make sane decisions when they are in the depths of despair cheryl.....if they did....then surely...they would be perfect human beings.....cut the guy some slack....he's paid the price....and that is the world knowing about his misdemeanours.....its up to the 'fans' to decide....whether they want to stick by him or not......i think its great.... that roddick is sticking by him and sees the bigger picture.....

I am not taking him to task for taking meth, Malty. I try to be understanding of the mistakes people make when they're struggling. I am referring to his choice to dig up this garbage now that he's retired. It makes the ATP look corrupt and as I said before, it casts a shadow on Roger and Rafa.

cheryl, i am hearing what you are saying....but when people write autobiographies...what is the point in missing stuff out? its about a...'tell all and pay the consequences....' homos and me were having this conversation yesterday.......lets say he had left it out.....someone out there would have read the book and probably would have been within his close circle of friends.....and would have come out of the woodwork...to say.....agassi forgot this bit.....P-O-W, cheryl!...new story.....agassi has...more...egg on his face...then what? better to be honest now....why did he do it now? why does anyone do anything at that precise moment? you cant pick and choose when to write a book....you just kind of know when it is the right time......you just do it....it was agassi's time...he must have felt he needed to do it....and why not?

I dont think it does make the the ATP look corrupt....at all.....they believed what agassi said at that time.....when he wrote the letter.....you want to believe the truth from a respected player...right?,.....and unbeknownst to them....they were proved wrong.....but only because agassi decided to 'fess up.....i dont think it casts a shadow on the fed or rafa.....you put too much pressure on them....everyone has a choice.....you cannot make the ATP, federer or rafa responsible for agassi's 'choice'...even though agassi was clearly.....suffering mentally at that time......

"he did it to sell the book" is OBVIOUSLY the No. 1 reason.

if $ interest comes before peace of mind than this revelation is simply scary.

pos...quite simply...he needed his 'mea culpa...mea culpa'...it couldnt have been about the money....worth over 60 million, plus endorsements over his career....he doesnt need the money...what he needed was a confession and forgiveness.....he'll get forgiveness from some...but not from others.....the book will sell.....done deal....the money will go towards his charity for disadvantaged kids in LA...good for agassi...

OK,we have debated the reason why he did it and now .....
what about the players that he beat during that time and after? what about the trophies he won?
I think that he should be made to give them back. martina Navratilova today compared Agassi to Roger Clemons.
They took Marion Jones medals why not take his. We will never know but I doubt that he only used Meths once.
But i would be shocked if anything is done:)
people are going to look what he's doing to help children and stuff and praise him for confessing in a book

alik, the difference is that meth isn't performance enhancing. They stripped Marion Jones' medals because she was juicing, not because she was addicted to Oxicontin. Plus, he's past the 8 year statute that WADA and the ATP have agreed on.

selling books is not all about making $

plenty of it is ego-related

why would ANYONE write a book if they didn't want people to read it?

I still come down on the side of the argument that says Agassi shouldn't have come out with this confession. He was the one who took this drug and then lied about the circumstances of its use. He made up a lie to try and avoid a suspension by the ATP. The fact that he knowingly used this drug, rather than just accidentally ingesting it from a spiked drink, is critical here. One can say that the ATP should have suspended him either way, but Agassi made a strategic move to make this seem like a much less serious offense, i.e. that he had no intent to take the drug. It is a big deal. Based on his lie, the ATP let him off. So they allowed him to continue to play tennis.

Years later he decides to out them and essentially bite the hand that fed him, or in literal terms, allowed him to continue to play. He had to know that this would be more than embarrassing for the ATP. He also had to understand the possible implications for current star players like Fed and Rafa.

I believe that you can atone in private. It's not necessary to clear your conscience in a tell-all book. In face, I think Agassi has atoned and redeemed himself be establishing and supporting charitable causes and establishing himself as a happily married husband and father. He has led a good life in the years after this unfortunate and difficult low point in his life. That is how you atone for what you have done. I don't think it's fair for him to put the ATP in the midst of this controversy, when it was his own actions that instigated the whole mess in the first place. He did the deed, lied about it to try to save himself from a suspension, was allowed to continue to play and that should have been the end of it. Nothing good will come out of this public confession.

more people read/buy it more $, less people read/buy it less $. anyhow, someone is going to make a lot of $, Agassi, publisher, etc ... if they just want people to read they will certainly direct the revenue towards charities.

the man Agassi wanted to clear his conscience, it's not about tennis, or a reflection of tennis, it's about a man and his conscience... we already know none of us is perfect, why be shocked? sad maybe, true, it is sad that someone/anyone should feel the need to take drugs, as for tennis, it can only benefit, all the more reason to be strict about drugs...

C?mon people he was not and is not drug addict. It was only a day of weakness. I do not defend him. Of course that is something that should not have been done, but he done it and now he decided to reveal the truth. As far as ATP is concerned, that is a different thing. As we can see nobody is perfect. We have seen Phelps smoking marihuana, and .... I think that tennis players should not involve in this matter. People who were in charge in ATP should say a couple of words. For me it is much tougher the thing he had with his father. This was the source of his misery, suffer and some inappropriate conducts. DON'T FORGET WHAT HE HAS DONE FOR TENNIS.

@I think that tennis players should not involve in this matter. People who were in charge in ATP should say a couple of words.
Just to clarify, when I said tennis players should not involve in this matter, I meant that they should not give any comments. It is not their affair.

Cheryl,I know what Marion was taking and i know the difference between the types of drugs.but do you think that it is OK for a player to take Crystal meth,cocaine,heroin(because it is like a speed drug) and still compete?

I would be the last person to forget what Agassi has done for tennis. I have already given him full credit for getting his life together. I did not say he was a drug addict. The point I am trying to make here is that the ATP gave him a break and let him continue to play. They should not have done that, but they did. Why stab them in the back in an incident in which he was complicit? Nobody is saying that everyone is perfect. That is not the issue here and has nothing to do with this discussion. We have been discussing the implications of his confession for the sport of tennis. To think there will be no consequences or that it will not reflect on Fed or Rafa, is being quite disingenuous. There is going to be a feeling that others have gotten away with this over the years. Fed and Rafa will be watched even more closely and their every move and action will be analyzed.

Agassi didn't have to clear his conscience by doing this. You clear your conscience by living an honest, decent life and by doing good deeds. He is fortunate to not have succumbed to this addiction. There are many who get involved with crystal meth, heroin and cocaine and don't ever make it back.

Agassi could have rested on his considerable achievements in the sport of tennis and his exemplary charity work. It's my personal belief that he should have done just that.

I'm with nativenewyorker...there was no justifiable reason to come out with this revelation now, so many, many years later. The public is not the place for the Catholic confessional or the airing of private angst that only results in innocent others being hurt or questioned or doubted. Agassi surely discussed all this with his editors and publishers and - importantly - himself and still decided to skip that lonely walk for personal redemption and head straight for the book sales...

poor agassi, he must be sneezing endlessly!

i'd like a journo to ask him why he revealed it, and agassi to answer the question truthfully. until then, we're all speculating and judging the man a little unfairly. although it's a great discussion and many fans here raised thoughtful points, i can't help but feel for andre somewhat. we weren't in his shoes, we don't know what he was going through at the time and why he included it in his book. he came a long way when he returned to the sport after a 2 yr absence, grew up a lot since, playing a sport he didn't want to play. how would each one of us have reacted? agassi has made mistakes in the past, some of it instigated by nike which agassi personally made amends for with the people he hurt. i personally prefer to commend those who make amends and chastise those who remain arrogant.

the ATP didnt.....'let him off'....that would imply they...'knew'....he was taking meth....they believed agassi...and why shouldnt they?...his letter provided a valid excuse......he wasnt even number 1 at the time, i think i read he was heading the wrong way..no. 8 and going even further down.....so when everyone talks about agassi being the 'cash cow...' not so.....like i said...why bother writing an auto...if you arent going to be honest about your own life....warts and all......there isnt anything surprising about it whatsoever......thats what autobiographies do....and i wish people would stop saying this is going to affect roger and rafa......they are not responsible for the whole worlds problems/choices....and the testing now is the strictest it has ever been....irrespective of what andre said....agassi's revelations wont affect this.....these athletes are tested week in..week out.....at the drop of a hat.....24 hours notice.....R and R said they are happy to be tested at any time...(though rafa came out with murray to say it was a bit much in the summer......as is his right...and which was reported here about 6 months ago....).....it is the nature of their game......i think nadal is being a bit over the top using the word...'cheat'....(if that is what he did say....)......agassi only cheated himself.....it didnt enhance his play......roger and rafa know their game....know what it entails...and will not succumb to the lures of drugs.....i think roddick has been the most supportive of agassi....and his comments should be applauded....homos is right.....agassi has made amends...he should be supported not scoffed at....we dont know whether agassi went to see the ATP about his revelations......that could have happened....we just dont know....

go and see agassi's video link - he speaks for.... 2 minutes about W-H-Y he wrote the book -.... and then make your own judgments....

correction...agassi was world no. 141 in 1997......

Agassi cheated the system by not taking the punishment like other players who are suspended from the game for the same offence.

Is Agassi's "confession" a publicity /marketing ploy? Or perhaps would someone else spill the beans so Agassi admitted to this first? ...He would do better to publicise the dangers of drug taking rather than make a buck out of it.. esp since people still esteem + look up to him.. Everyone makes mistakes but it's the way we respond to making them that counts too..+ he lied. The ATP + WADA need to clear this matter up + explain their response before other innocent players have their clean reputations tarnished.

My two cents (not that anyone asked for them):

Well, after reading all the comments from the stone casters on this here site, all I can think is God forbid if Agassi had admitted to taking STEROIDS and lying about them to ATP. Most of you all would have the torches and pitchforks out.

And yeah, crystal meth was such a performance enhancer that the bottom fell out of Agassi's career while he was on it. Good call! What's amusing to me about the Agassi story is how everyone is so ready to condone one drug -- crystal meth -- while being perfectly OK with another -- cortisone -- which Agassi took repeatedly towards the end of the line. Cortisone is in fact a performance enhancer and a way of life in all sports, yet no one gives a rat's patootie about it. Hey, if that's what it takes to get guys through a match or tournament, so be it. Well, what's the difference? That a team or tourney sanctioned official is doing the shooting up? It's only small degrees of difference.

And ATP looked, well, not the other way, but not too carefully into the excuse of one of its stars? This is shocking? Really? Does anyone seriously believe Gasquet's nonsense about his failed drug test last spring? He was supposed to get 2 years, yet somehow he's back. Correct me if I'm wrong, but he was nailed in 2009, and it's not 2011, so what happened there?

All I can say is a whole lot of you must not be fans of any other sport besides tennis. You want to see heroes pulling down a sport, take a look at baseball. This is nothing, a mere blip on the screen, a bump in the road. People aren't suddenly going to stop watching Fed-v-Nadal or anyone else for that matter because of this -- well, sane people, anyway. People aren't going to suddenly boo Agassi off the court the next time he shows up somewhere.

Sure, Agassi has set himself up for scorn -- for a while -- and if you want the image of Agassi as a one-time occasional recreational drug user 12 freakin' years ago instead of that of the past decade as champion and good-will ambassador to dominate your opinion of Agassi, go right ahead. But I think that says more about you than it does Agassi.

SP -

First on Gasquet. The tribunal reviewed the case, talked to witnesses and studied the amount of cocaine in his system. After an INQUIRY, they found him to be innocent. There was no inquiry in Agassi's case. None. They said "see? He said he didn't do it!" and threw the case out without even reviewing it. There is a HUGE difference.

On baseball - Yes, I'm familiar with baseball and all of the controversy surrounding doping. There is a HUGE difference though. Baseball is still a "main" sport in the US. Tennis is a niche sport here and in many other markets as well. Tennis isn't going to bounce back from scandal as easily as football or baseball. In this particular case, not all publicity is good publicity.

I'm not one to judge the reasons why AA did drugs or why he's confessing now. I think far more relevant than his motives, which are really impossible for any one but him to truly know, is the impact on the sport. Rafa is the one who has it right. Regardless of all the good Andre did, what happened was unfair to everyone else. And who can jugde what other players do with their money? Most of them donate to worthy causes... The perceived amount of "good" one does should never come into play as to how WRONG is WRONG and it should be punished.
I bet many tennis pros as much good with their earnings as Andre, but with a lot less publicity.
Rafa is leveling the field, here. He looks at everyone as deserving a fair set of rules for EVERYONE. Just like as a player, he respects every fellow player regardless of ranking or fame, and out of that respect comes his indignation toward what Andre is doing.
Cheers!

I completely disagree, Cheryl, for precisely the same reasons you use to back your point. BECAUSE tennis is a niche sport, it will bounce back quicker, because, honestly, no one over here really cares -- particularly because it was recreational drugs. I mean, in Chicago, it was a roundup story, nothing more, when it was disclosed, and it's gone from the sports pages already. Maybe it's being played up more elsewhere, but I honestly don't see it as being even mentioned a year from now.

Let's also not forget that this isn't exactly the time tennis has a spotlight put on it. If this had come out during a Slam or even Wimbledon or the Open, different story. But now, with the World Series, NFL games, college football, basketball and hockey vying for sports fans' attention, this story slips under the radar. In fact, one might argue that Agassi did tennis a solid by having the book come out NOW instead of during the spring or summer when it might be a bigger story.

Now if it had been steroids that Agassi took, totally different story. Then the game and Agassi are sullied. Crystal meth? A few times 12 years ago when his career was in the tank? Sorry, but no one but tennis writers and some fans cares. In fact, I'd be willing to bet that Agassi draws far more ridicule in the media and from fans for his faux mullet than his drug use.

SP, recreational or not, their use was forbidden and punishable by a 3 months suspension. Plus I don't think the use of CM was ever legal either, so he lied about it and received no consequences form the ATP or the law. He was a liar and a criminal. Because of the Tour De France scandals, now Spanish athletes are under additional scrutiny. Tennis has remained relatively clean by comparison to cycling where entire teams have been disqualified or forced to withdraw. But every shadow of suspicion takes away from the relatively good reputation of Tennis and its stars. And the biggest target of them all is Rafa Nadal, who due to his physical prowess has already fallen under the suspicions of many (just read this blog to see that). He just didn't need this to add fuel to the fire, so rightly enough he speaks out clearly and firmly against drugs and cheating of any kind.
If he were to appear soft, forgiving or apologetic of Andre's behavior people would instantly see that as a condoning of the practice, and he can't afford that. For that matter neither can any of the pro-players.
I do agree with you on the fact that Tennis will bounce back, mostly thanks to the unwavering resolve of Roger, Rafa and the other top stars to remain exemplary in their behaving in and out of the court. They have already built enough credibility that they will overcome this setback. I guess Andre has decided that he doesn't want to be an idol anymore, which is fine with me, since I find the stars of today far more deserving of the fans praise.
Cheers.

It's deafening how silent the ATP has been about this, not even a mention on their news page. So much seems to be swept under the carpet. Why did no one know that Soderling had failed to make himself available for a test at the FO, yet Gasquet's positive result was made public even before he had a chance to defend himself.

Soderling has received a warning, and if he fails to comply two more times, he is automatically banned from the Olympics, but I don't know how that affects the ATP or ITF tours.

Rafa is right, it should be a level playing field.

Has any of the red-tops tracked down "Slim" yet to hear his version of events?

Or does tennis matter to the world at large? SP may just be on to something here, Cheryl.

The story of the footballer sent to jail - for something that did not of itself bring his sport into disrepute - is far bigger copy this past weekend.

carrie: reminds me of the canadian sprinter johnson who, after beating lewis in the 100 m race, hid from the drug testers but was found later in the pub drinking so much beer to dilute himself. tested positive later for steroids and his gold med confiscated and given to lewis, lol! it jogged my memory of this.

phelp's makes a concerted effort to frnt up at every available drug test/ experimental procedure just to silence the critics who accuse him of being drug tainted, even with no proof. than you also get the marion jones types.... sad to see the 'clean' ones feeling they must go out of their way/comfort zone just to proof their innocence but we live in a world of suspicious minds and finger pointing.

RE: Agassi...let's forget about tennis for a minute and focus on the fact that the truth will set you free. Agassi needed to make this confession to prevent living a complete lie. God has forgiven him for his deception and he seems to be ready for any punishment which the ATP hands to him. This was a courageous move on his part.

I enjoy very much SenorPlaid's thinking on this matter. Agassi has proven many times over to be a good man. Personally I don't feel his need to tell the public about something he did 12 years ago can/is going to take much away from that. We live our lives as best we can, our focus should never be our regrets, but our achievements. Agassi told us this to be free of it... Human beings make mistakes, we should not be so quick to condemn. Looking at the whole of what I know of Agassi, I'm proud to have known of him, as a human brother on the small planet in need of a good heart. With Agassi the positive far outweighs anything else.

http://www.star-telegram.com/sports/story/1727025.html
Miniarbre posted this on Cheryl's blog ... I thought it was something others might want to see.