Simona Halep: Gheorghe Hagi and Justine Henin

The stars of our sport shared stories about their heroes, both in life and on the court, and how these idols shaped who they are today. For more "My Hero" submissions, click here.

My idol in Romania was a football player, Gheorghe Hagi. I met him in Constanta when I was 10 years old. I was very shy in that moment. I couldn't speak with him too much, but he told me that I had to believe in my dream, and work hard every day.

In tennis, my idol was Justine Henin. I just met her for the first time in Toronto this year, and I was very nervous. It's nice to see that such a big champion, a Grand Slam champion, is like me! She's not very tall. She was moving unbelievably on court. She was very aggressive, and I like her style on court. She was a very nice lady.

Hagi photo from Wikimedia Commons