Other than my father, I'd never seen a black man playing tennis - and certainly not a black man like Yannick Noah. At 6'4", wiry muscle, and legs that looked taller than me, I couldn't believe how perfect he looked. His waist was small, but his shoulders broad. His thighs scarcely contained the quadriceps that would launch him into the air on his infamous overhead, and the racquet looked more like a ping pong paddle in his hands, such was the efficacy with which he wielded his weapon of choice….
…A childhood hero is a childhood hero, and being six-inches from him was like being close enough to reach out and touch the sun, but I must admit, I was less impressed than I expected to be.