Steffi Graf

"It was not a decision I had to make, but something that reflected my personality. Basically, I had little interest in exposing myself, when I played my privacy was very important to me. It may have something to do with why I came to the fore at a very young age."

"There were less peaceful times in my environment, but I always had a lot of support. You get close to people who think like you, who have similar values, and you learn to recognize and identify those people. Tennis meant that I was surrounded by a lot of people and developed good radar to identify who was who."

"It was such a mobilizing thing that I decided to get involved."

"My goal is simply to give them back their happiness. And they give a lot to us because they show a strength that is admirable."

"It’s clear that the new generations grow up with them as a given, but to be communicating all the time, it’s almost obligation to do so… It becomes more difficult to stay focused on the essential, to have balance."