My hero: Bungei on Andre Agassi

Olympic 800m champion Wilfred Bungei of Kenya is one of the gentlemen of track and field and he surprisingly plumps for a star from a different sport for his hero...

“I can tell you the person I most admire is tennis player Andre Agassi. Of course, in athletics I would say Wilson [Kipketer, the world 800m record holder and Bungei’s cousin] but outside it would be Andre.

"I remember watching him when I was racing in Spain when he won the French Open for the first time. He sunk to his knees and started sobbing. I thought, how can a guy as big as Andre just sob? Whenever he was playing he seemed very down to earth.

"After that I followed him in all the games that he was doing, although I can’t remember where he was playing all that time. The interesting thing was his serve. His way of serving was so quick. He was always trying to push the openings, push, push, push. He had such an aggressive way of playing.

"I’ve never met him and I don’t know whether I will have the opportunity in the future. But if I did meet him I would tell him the truth. I enjoyed watching him play and the way he pushed the openings.

"I didn’t know him when I was in Kenya but when I was in Europe I supported him I was a fan. It made me want to follow that person.

"In my village we have a tennis and golf club. I play a little tennis for relaxation with my wife and my sons. Can I defeat my wife at tennis? It would be interesting if she beat me.”

***Andre Agassi was an eight-time Grand Slam winner and former world tennis No.1.