Andre Agassi learned an interesting lesson some time ago on Parents Day at his childrens school. After describing his tennis career, he realized neither the parents nor the kids in the audience were very interested in hearing the way he was able to return the rumbling power of Pete Sampras serve or how he completed a career Grand Slam.They were more mesmerized by the gold medal than anything else, Agassi told ESPN.com on the 20th anniversary of his 1996 Summer Olympic Games triumph in Atlanta. It has this power. Thats why some athletes who have one carry it around with them. Because so many people just want to see it. Some display it. Others hide it or put it in a safety deposit box so it cant get lost or stolen.An Olympic gold medal is the ultimate athletic talisman. It is the unqualified symbol of a competitors victory at a moment that will forever be protected. Theres nothing beyond it.Gold is among the heavier elements, but Agassi still reaches for his medal as if it were a buoyant lifesaver as his darkest days approached. For that reason, his win in Atlanta is as important to him as any of his eight major titles.Early in 1995, Agassi had beaten Sampras in the Australian Open final, and in doing so, he snared the No. 1 ranking for the first time. Agassi flew wild and high that summer, amassing a 26-match winning streak at one point.He finished the year with a sterling 73-9 record and bagged seven titles, but it was one loss in late September that gutted him for years to come. Agassi had navigated his way to the US Open final, but the fearsome ball striker fell to rival Sampras in four sets. A summer of celebration had turned into anguish. Agassi crashed. He had nothing left.By the end of 1995, Agassis life was unraveling like gut strings in a racket that had been played for too long. Demons that lay dormant were coming awake and closing in as the next season began.The bottom was starting to come up at me and my [first] wife [Brooke Shields] in 1996, Agassi said. I took the loss to Pete at the Open hard. My achievements didnt cure the disconnect I felt from the game. I was struggling with meaning and purpose.Agassis youth was a handsomely illustrated catalog of conflicts and poor decisions. But even as a rebel and wild child, he had the patriot gene, as his Davis Cup exploits attest. He always held the Olympic Games in like regard. So while his resentment of tennis by mid-1996 was at a fever pitch, he clung to his Olympic ambitions. He found the will to train for the intense heat of Atlanta with laser-like focus.I was really clear, Agassi said. Difficulty is guaranteed, but clarity is gold. It was the first time I felt passion and focus after my struggles started in 95.Still, various burdens coursed through Agassis nervous system like strains of virus as the Games began. Agassi did not always handle pressure well, at least not in his early years. He was a vulnerable top seed in Atlanta.Olympics is in its own category, Agassi said, noting that its the only time a tennis player truly is competing on behalf of his country as an individual.Agassi and Croatian?Goran Ivanisevic were seeded Nos. 1 and 2, respectively, in Atlanta. The treacherous nature of Olympic tennis kicked in immediately as Ivanisevic was eliminated easily in the first round.Agassi foundered, barely getting by Jonas Bjorkman, always a tough out on hard courts, in two close tiebreakers. In the third round, Agassi was down a set and a break before he recovered to beat Italian Andrea Gaudenzi. Wayne Ferreira of South Africa served for the match in the quarterfinals, but Agassi came up clutch. In the best-of-five final, Agassi ran Sergi Bruguera to the ground in signature fashion, 6-2, 6-3, 6-1.Some critics will note Sampras, Boris Becker and a host of other Grand Slam contenders did not play Atlanta for various reasons. Most of them never won Olympic gold, either -- even when they chose to compete. Bear in mind, Nicolas Massu has a singles gold, and so does a Swiss player not named Roger Federer. Marc Rosset won the singles competition at the 1992 Barcelona Games. Thats Olympic tennis.I never needed an opponent to lose, Agassi said. But there were also times that it didnt matter who I played. I was going to win. My pride in getting over the line in Atlanta isnt affected by any considerations.Agassis gold medal sits at the very center of the display of his Grand Slam trophies, in the gym he built in Las Vegas some decades ago with great friend and long-time trainer Gil Reyes. Invariably, aspiring athletes visiting the facility wonder where the medal fits into the greater scheme of things.How somebody perceives the challenge or importance of the Olympics is kind of their business, Agassi said. I just look at that medal and say, I wish every person in the history of our game who was great at what he did had one. Wholesale Stitched NFL Jerseys . Deulofeu injured a muscle in his right leg in Evertons 4-1 win over Fulham in the English Premier League on Saturday. Barcelona says that its team doctors will "co-ordinate" with Evertons medical staff as Deulofeu recovers. Cheap NFL Jerseys China . Irving scored 23 points, Tristan Thompson had 20 points and 10 rebounds and the Cavaliers beat the Denver Nuggets 117-109 on Friday night. http://www.wholesalecheapauthenticnfljerseys.com/ . The judges scored it 48-47, 48-47, 49-46 for Jones (19-1). It was the champions closest call. Despite the loss, it was a remarkable show by the confident Swedish challenger, who had the best of the early rounds and then hung on in the fourth and fifth. Wholesale MLB Jerseys China . Louis Blues teammates who would also be participating in the Olympics, Alex Pietrangelo felt right at home, no different in some ways to the travel experience of any old road trip – save for the length of the journey, that is. Cheap Jerseys From China . Instead of dwelling on the negative, Oates focused on what was good about the clubs recent play. It worked. CHICAGO -- The Chicago Cubs expect starter John Lackey to return from a strained right shoulder this weekend.Lackey -- 9-7 with a 3.41 ERA -- threw on Thursday. The team says the session went well, and assuming no setbacks, the veteran will start against San Francisco on Sunday.Reliever Hector Rondon (strained right triceps) will begin a rehab assignment with Triple-A Iowa on Saturday.Reliever Pedro Strop (torn meniscus in left knee) tweaked his right grooin in a workout on Wednesday.dddddddddddd The Cubs expect him to miss about six weeks after initially projecting him to be out four to six following his injury on Aug. 10.Chicago activated outfielder Chris Coghlan (ribs) and right-hander Joe Smith (hamstring) from the disabled list and called up righty Jake Buchanan from Iowa. Cheap Stitched Jerseys China NFL Jerseys White Wholesale NFL Autographed Jerseys Jerseys From China Cheap NFL Jerseys Wholesale China Jerseys Wholesale Cheap Nike NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys Wholesale NFL Jerseys Youth NFL Jerseys Cheap Wholesale NFL Gear Youth NFL Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys Wholesale Wholesale Nike NFL Jerseys Wholesale Nike NFL Jerseys ' ' '