Nov. 5 (Bloomberg) -- Andre Agassi’s admission he failed a drug test and then lied about it to tennis officials has hurt his image and that of the sport, French Open tournament director Gilbert Ysern said.

“It’s shocking,” Ysern said in an interview today from Paris. “It is a former champion, and it is not good for the image of the game.”

Ten years after completing the career Grand Slam of all four majors by winning his first French Open, Agassi returned to Roland Garros in June to hand over the trophy to 2009 champion Roger Federer.

Ysern said he would “probably not” have invited the eight-time Grand Slam champion to the clay-court event for the trophy presentation had he known about the drug use.

“If we ask a former champion to do a trophy ceremony, we highly value that image,” Ysern said. “His image is hurt.”

In excerpts from Agassi’s book “Open,” serialized by a number of media organizations including the London-based Times, the former top-ranked player tells how he took the highly addictive drug crystal meth in 1997 when he struggled with his form and was having problems in his failed marriage to actress Brooke Shields.

Agassi, 39, said he was introduced to crystal meth by his assistant at the time, a man he referred to as “Slim.”

He then goes on to say how he failed a drug test, and duped tennis officials into believing he wasn’t aware of taking the substance. He told them he “unwittingly” ingested the drug by drinking from one of Slim’s “spiked” sodas.

No Action

After reviewing the case, the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP), the governing body of men’s tennis, took no further action against the American. He went on to win five more majors.

In an interview to be aired on CBS Corp.’s “60 Minutes” on Nov. 8, Agassi said he “needed help” at the time he took the drug because of depression and asked for understanding.

“I had a problem and there might be many other athletes out there that test positive for recreational drugs that have a problem,” Agassi told CBS anchorwoman Katie Couric. “So I would ask for some compassion.”

He said he had no regrets in disclosing his drug use in the book and that he wasn’t sure how it might affect his chances of reaching tennis’s Hall of Fame.

Critics

Agassi’s confession prompted a stream of criticism from tennis officials, players and the World Anti-Doping Agency. The ATP, now called the ATP World Tour, has also come under scrutiny for how it dealt with the issue.

The International Tennis Federation, the sport’s world governing body, said it was “surprised and disappointed” by Agassi’s remarks.

WADA president John Fahey urged the ATP to “shed light on this allegation,” while Sergei Bubka, an ex-member of the International Olympic Committee’s executive board and former pole vaulting gold medalist, said Agassi should be punished for taking a banned substance.

Top-ranked Federer said the news came as “a shock” and that he was “disappointed.”

Second-ranked Rafael Nadal said it would be “dreadful” if the ATP covered for Agassi.

“If they covered for the player and punished others for doing the same kind of thing then that would seem to me to be a lack of respect for all sportsmen,” the Spaniard said.

To contact the reporter on this story: Danielle Rossingh at the London sports desk at drossingh@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: November 5, 2009 16:24 EST