Boris Becker: «Going through prison has made me a better and stronger man».
German tennis player Boris Becker considers himself «a better and stronger man» after being released from prison after being «humiliated» by his conviction for concealing assets last year.
Released after serving eight months of his sentence
Becker, a six-time ‘Grand Slam’ singles champion, was sentenced to two-and-a-half years in jail last April after being found guilty of concealing assets and loans worth £2.5 million – €2.8 million – to avoid paying debts when he filed for bankruptcy in 2017. The German was released after serving eight months of his sentence in December and was subsequently deported from the UK.
«Whoever says that life in prison is not hard and difficult, I think they are lying.»
Speaking to BBC Radio 5 Live, Becker said he had learned valuable lessons from his time inside pressure, where his legendary tennis achievements counted for nothing. «Anyone who says life in prison isn’t hard and difficult, I think they’re lying. I was surrounded by murderers, drug dealers, rapists, human traffickers… dangerous criminals,» Becker said.
«If you think you’re better than everyone else, you lose.»
«You fight every day to survive. You quickly have to surround yourself with the tough guys, as I would call it, because you need protection. If you think you’re better than everyone else, you lose. It doesn’t matter that I was a tennis player. The only currency we have inside is our character and our personality. That’s it, you have nothing else. At the beginning you have no friends, you are literally alone, and that’s the hardest thing. You have to dig inside yourself about your qualities and your strengths, but also about your weaknesses,» he continued.
May not return to the United Kingdom until October 2024.
Becker, formerly a regular on the BBC’s Wimbledon coverage, may not return to the UK until October 2024. Having worked as a commentator with Eurosport for Germany at the Australian Open earlier this year, Becker is eager to rebuild his reputation.
«It made me more humble.»
«I’m usually good in the fifth set: I won the first two, lost the next two and plan to win it. It certainly made me more humble, it made me realize that whether your name is Boris Becker or Paul Smith, if you break the law, you get convicted and jailed, that goes for everybody. I never expected the good and I certainly didn’t expect the bad, but I’m a survivor, I’m a tough nut to crack,» he said.
«A better and stronger man.»
«I have endured sorrows, I have endured imprisonment, but I have also endured glory and, if anything, this has made me a better and stronger man. With my decisions in the future it will be seen whether I have learned from it or not,» he concluded.
