ATS
Former world tennis No.1 Boris Becker admitted on Tuesday to be “guilty” of the financial fraud that led him to prison. He says he feared for his life during this “painful” experience.
“I learned a hard lesson. A very expensive lesson. Very painful,” said the German star, three-time Wimbledon winner, on the Sat.1 television channel. It was his first interview since being released from custody last week following eight months in detention in the UK.
“Of course I was guilty,” admitted the six-time Grand Slam winner. During his trial, he pleaded naivety or error of judgment. The court harshly criticized his lack of an act of contrition.
Bursting several times in tears, the former champion recounted, in detail, his prison life, made of “hunger” and “extreme danger”, and of “English and mathematics lessons” given to his fellow prisoners. “In prison, you are nobody. You are just a number. Mine was A2923EV,” he added.
The former tennis player said he had feared for his life several times, especially when a fellow prisoner threatened to kill him, before “other prisoners” intervened.
“A good thing for me”
The 55-year-old ex-tennis champion was released on December 15 following serving a prison sentence for financial offences, primarily fraudulent bankruptcy. He immediately headed back to Germany.
“Prison was a good thing for me. We have time to think a lot (…) All these years, I made many mistakes, had bad friends, I did not organize myself well enough, ”he assured.
Boris Becker, who had lived in the UK since 2012, was convicted in April of concealing or illicitly transferring hundreds of thousands of euros and pounds to avoid settling his debts following being declared bankrupt.
“Big Dubai Fan”
He had been sentenced to two and a half years in prison by a London court but only served eight months. The former sportsman does not intend to stay in Germany: “Maybe Miami”, he mentioned, also claiming to be “a big fan of Dubai”.
This interview is only the first step in the media return of the former champion, who should be the hero of a documentary presented out of competition at the next Berlinale, the Berlin international film festival. The synopsis for this film, directed by Oscar-winning British filmmaker Alex Gibney, promises to tell the story of a “young talent who conquered Wimbledon and, following setting a country ablaze, fell with the same greatness”.
ATS