The Tennis Week Interview: Gil Reyes
By Richard Pagliaro
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
It wasn't the fountain of youth, but a sustained source of strength that helped Andre Agassi craft a career Renaissance at an age when most of his rivals were already retired.
During his inspired run to the 2005 U.S. Open final, a then 35-year-old Andre Agassi revealed his source of inspiration when asked the secret to his success.
"Surround yourself with good people that know how to help you and make good decisions," Agassi said. "And train and work hard."
For nearly two decades Gil Reyes, the man often clad in black looking like the silk suits he wore were ready to burst at the seams from the strain of containing his biceps, was a key member of Agassi's support team.
From box seats in the most prestigious Grand Slam stadiums in the world to side-by-side seats on planes embarking on countless flights to tournament sites to backyard barbecues to Christmas mornings watching the former World No. 1 sprint up and down the hill near his home until his legs and lungs felt on the verge of exploding, Reyes has been in Agassi's corner throughout his career and has been astounded by what the two friends who dared to dream big achieved together.
Pumping iron strengthened Agassi's position as a perennial top 10 power as he joined Rod Laver as the only man to win five Grand Slam titles after celebrating his 29th birthday.
Physical fitness was a key component to Agassi's career Renaissance. The rigorous strength and conditioning program Agassi adhered to under the guidance of Reyes helped him transform himself from a scrawny 145-pound teenager whose shoulder-length streaked hair was the defining characteristic of his slender frame to a chiseled 173-pound package of power. Agassi attributes the nearly 30 pounds of muscle mass he's added over the years to his training with Reyes, the former strength and conditioning trainer for the University of Nevada-Las Vegas. A teenage Agassi walked into the weight room and asked Reyes for guidance launching one of the longest and most successful partnerships in tennis.
Born in East L.A. Reyes acquired his work ethic from his parents. His father was a mechanic at a chemical plant and his mother maintained a tight-knit family. It was the common willingness to tough it out the training room trenches that bonded Agassi and Reyes as every rep and every run brought both one step closer toward achieving their aims and fulfilling a pact the pair made at the start of their partnership.
"I met Andre when he was a teenager and we talked about dreams and wishes and I said 'Hey, if we're gonna do this then we're gonna lock arms and close ranks and we're gonna go the distance,' " Reyes remembers. "I had a saying we would often refer to: when you talk about achieving your dreams and wishes make sure your backbone is as busy as your wishbone. I said that to Andre and he said "I'm all in." And you know where we come from in Vegas when you say "all in" that really means something — that's a commitment, there's no turning back at that point."
Reyes was much more than a fitness trainer for Agassi, he has been a friend, advisor and mentor, a man so influential Agassi named his son, Jaden Gil, in honor of Reyes. A philosophical man, Reyes says his greatest reward for working with the eight-time Grand Slam champion was not always the glint of the silver title trophies, it's the impact Agassi had on people that resonates with Reyes the most.
"I'll tell you a quick story," Reyes said. "We had tasted defeat at Roland Garros many times and it was very painful and cut very deep and as I was sitting there in the stadium I would see these beautifully-dressed women and elegantly dressed men in tailored suits smiling and applauding the French Open champion. But even after all those painful losses, Andre's attitude was never 'Oh, poor me.' It was always 'Let's get back to work and come back again next year.' But on June 6, 1999 when Andre was down two sets to none and came back to win Roland Garros for the first time, I still remember looking around me and seeing some of the same fans who were smiling during past matches and now all of sudden many of them were sobbing and crying because what Andre achieved had touched them so deeply. Because he had been knocked down so many times but got back up and kept fighting until he came back and won. And as I saw that I said to myself 'I'll be darned, this kid has worked his way into their hearts. He has really touched people.' "
Two years after Agassi's retirement, Reyes is now back in the game. The long-time trainer has signed on with adidas as a member of its coaching team. Adidas director of global tennis marketing Jim Latham created the concept of assembling a coaching and training team to support adidas top players and hired highly-respected coach Sven Groeneveld, who has coached Tommy Haas and Mary Pierce in the past, to head the initiative. The program paid immediate dividends as Groeneveld helped coach Ana Ivanovic to the French Open final last year. He has continued working with Ivanovic and spent some time coaching Sania Mirza at Indian Wells this week. Reyes, whose role will be working with the players on training and preparation, made his adidas debut at this week's Pacific Life Open. Tennis Week caught up with the man in black for this interview.
http://www.tennisweek.com/news/fullstory.sps?inewsid=542531#top
Maybe if Roger had people like this in his corner it would help him deal with Nadal and his game? Maybe pumping some iron (as Agassi did) would help him add some zip and power to that backhand? Surely even just the moral support of having people like this in his corner would help his mental approach? Surely if Roger is really serous about stamping his mark as the all-time Slam Leader.. then he has to get some heavyweights in his corner to deal with this heavyweight thorn in his side (i.e. Nadal)?
Surely if there in any player who can afford to hire people like this, it is Roger?
Maybe the Real question is: With his legacy in the sport ultimately being determined by the Grand Slams he wins from now until he retires, can he afford Not to hire people like this?
Discuss...
By Richard Pagliaro
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
It wasn't the fountain of youth, but a sustained source of strength that helped Andre Agassi craft a career Renaissance at an age when most of his rivals were already retired.
During his inspired run to the 2005 U.S. Open final, a then 35-year-old Andre Agassi revealed his source of inspiration when asked the secret to his success.
"Surround yourself with good people that know how to help you and make good decisions," Agassi said. "And train and work hard."
For nearly two decades Gil Reyes, the man often clad in black looking like the silk suits he wore were ready to burst at the seams from the strain of containing his biceps, was a key member of Agassi's support team.
From box seats in the most prestigious Grand Slam stadiums in the world to side-by-side seats on planes embarking on countless flights to tournament sites to backyard barbecues to Christmas mornings watching the former World No. 1 sprint up and down the hill near his home until his legs and lungs felt on the verge of exploding, Reyes has been in Agassi's corner throughout his career and has been astounded by what the two friends who dared to dream big achieved together.
Pumping iron strengthened Agassi's position as a perennial top 10 power as he joined Rod Laver as the only man to win five Grand Slam titles after celebrating his 29th birthday.
Physical fitness was a key component to Agassi's career Renaissance. The rigorous strength and conditioning program Agassi adhered to under the guidance of Reyes helped him transform himself from a scrawny 145-pound teenager whose shoulder-length streaked hair was the defining characteristic of his slender frame to a chiseled 173-pound package of power. Agassi attributes the nearly 30 pounds of muscle mass he's added over the years to his training with Reyes, the former strength and conditioning trainer for the University of Nevada-Las Vegas. A teenage Agassi walked into the weight room and asked Reyes for guidance launching one of the longest and most successful partnerships in tennis.
Born in East L.A. Reyes acquired his work ethic from his parents. His father was a mechanic at a chemical plant and his mother maintained a tight-knit family. It was the common willingness to tough it out the training room trenches that bonded Agassi and Reyes as every rep and every run brought both one step closer toward achieving their aims and fulfilling a pact the pair made at the start of their partnership.
"I met Andre when he was a teenager and we talked about dreams and wishes and I said 'Hey, if we're gonna do this then we're gonna lock arms and close ranks and we're gonna go the distance,' " Reyes remembers. "I had a saying we would often refer to: when you talk about achieving your dreams and wishes make sure your backbone is as busy as your wishbone. I said that to Andre and he said "I'm all in." And you know where we come from in Vegas when you say "all in" that really means something — that's a commitment, there's no turning back at that point."
Reyes was much more than a fitness trainer for Agassi, he has been a friend, advisor and mentor, a man so influential Agassi named his son, Jaden Gil, in honor of Reyes. A philosophical man, Reyes says his greatest reward for working with the eight-time Grand Slam champion was not always the glint of the silver title trophies, it's the impact Agassi had on people that resonates with Reyes the most.
"I'll tell you a quick story," Reyes said. "We had tasted defeat at Roland Garros many times and it was very painful and cut very deep and as I was sitting there in the stadium I would see these beautifully-dressed women and elegantly dressed men in tailored suits smiling and applauding the French Open champion. But even after all those painful losses, Andre's attitude was never 'Oh, poor me.' It was always 'Let's get back to work and come back again next year.' But on June 6, 1999 when Andre was down two sets to none and came back to win Roland Garros for the first time, I still remember looking around me and seeing some of the same fans who were smiling during past matches and now all of sudden many of them were sobbing and crying because what Andre achieved had touched them so deeply. Because he had been knocked down so many times but got back up and kept fighting until he came back and won. And as I saw that I said to myself 'I'll be darned, this kid has worked his way into their hearts. He has really touched people.' "
Two years after Agassi's retirement, Reyes is now back in the game. The long-time trainer has signed on with adidas as a member of its coaching team. Adidas director of global tennis marketing Jim Latham created the concept of assembling a coaching and training team to support adidas top players and hired highly-respected coach Sven Groeneveld, who has coached Tommy Haas and Mary Pierce in the past, to head the initiative. The program paid immediate dividends as Groeneveld helped coach Ana Ivanovic to the French Open final last year. He has continued working with Ivanovic and spent some time coaching Sania Mirza at Indian Wells this week. Reyes, whose role will be working with the players on training and preparation, made his adidas debut at this week's Pacific Life Open. Tennis Week caught up with the man in black for this interview.
http://www.tennisweek.com/news/fullstory.sps?inewsid=542531#top
Maybe if Roger had people like this in his corner it would help him deal with Nadal and his game? Maybe pumping some iron (as Agassi did) would help him add some zip and power to that backhand? Surely even just the moral support of having people like this in his corner would help his mental approach? Surely if Roger is really serous about stamping his mark as the all-time Slam Leader.. then he has to get some heavyweights in his corner to deal with this heavyweight thorn in his side (i.e. Nadal)?
Surely if there in any player who can afford to hire people like this, it is Roger?
Maybe the Real question is: With his legacy in the sport ultimately being determined by the Grand Slams he wins from now until he retires, can he afford Not to hire people like this?
Discuss...
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