Roger Federer has over the years endeared himself to every lover of the game of lawn tennis. His versatility, style of play as well as his achievements are what has made him a phenomenon in the game. The 2008 Olympic gold medalist is unarguably one of the greatest tennis players with a lot of Guinness World Record entries all from one specialty. Hate him or love him, the Swiss professional tennis player is a force to reckon with. Read more about him below.
Roger Federer Bio (Wiki)
The star athlete was born on August 8, 1981, in Basel, Switzerland. He has a mixed race; his father, Robert Federer is a Swiss-German while his mother, Lynette Federer (nee Durand) is a South African. Federer also has a sister named Diana whom he grew up with. She would later give birth to a set of twins. Roger Federer is also a dual citizen of both Switzerland and South Africa. And having grown up in nearby Birsfelden, Riehen, and then Munchenstein, close to the French and German borders, Federer speaks four languages fluently.
At a tender age after developing an interest in the game of tennis, Federer served as a Ball Boy at a tennis tournament played in his Basel hometown known as Swiss Indoors in 1992 and 1993. He went to observe the compulsory military service in the Swiss Armed Forces as done by all male Swiss citizens but he could not proceed with the assignment after being ruled out as being unsuitable. He would serve in the civil protection force and was required to pay 3% of his taxable income as an alternative. As a teenager, Federer played basketball and was a fan of F.C Basel (a soccer club) and the Swiss National Football Team.
Roger Federer started his tennis career as a teenager, though he also played basketball alongside before establishing himself as a professional tennis player. Before he turned 11, he was among the top three junior tennis players in Switzerland. His records increased tremendously that before he turned 14, he would feature in two or more tournaments in one month. He emerged the National Junior Champion in Switzerland and would be giving an opportunity to train in the Swiss National Tennis Centre in Ecublens.
Before he turned 16, he had been selected to join the International Tennis Federation Junior Tennis Circuit. 1998 was remarkable for him as he won both the Boys’ Singles final over Irakli Labadze and also the doubles where he teamed up with Oliver Rochus in their triumph over the team of Michael Llodra and Andy Ram. Though he lost the US Open Junior final in 1998 to David Nalbandian, he went on to lift the Junior Wimbledon Title and Orange Bowl same year. He was also named the ITF World Junior Tennis Champion of the Year.
Federer would go on to make his first tournament as a professional in Gstaad but lost to Lucas Kerin the first round. He didn’t see that as a failure, he saw it as a preparation for what was to come. He continued to give his best and in 2001, he won the Hopman Cup alongside Martina Hingis after defeating Monica Seles and Jan-Michael Gambill. In 2003, Federer made it to nine finals in the ATP tour and won seven of the nine. He won Grand Slam title at Wimbledon and became the first Swiss man to attain such height.
In 2004, he was ranked World No. 2 and lifted Australian Open, U.S Open, and the ATP Masters while still holding onto his Wimbledon Singles title. At the beginning of 2005, Federer was ranked No. 1, he did not disappoint as he lifted the Wimbledon Singles title for a record three straight years and also won the U.S. Open in the same year. He maintained his No. 1 spot in 2005, though he failed to reach the finals of the two Grand Slam Tournaments. In 2006, he won three Grand Slam Singles titles. He won the Gold medal in 2008 Olympics in Beijing after he paired with Stan Warrinka to defeat the Simon Aspelin and Thomas Johansson in the final.
For the past decade and a half, Roger Federer has been on top of his game and would continue with his exploits in years to come. The veteran tennis player has appeared in 30 Grand Slam finals, winning 20 and 10 runner-ups. As at 2018, Federer is the world’s highest number of Guinness World Records in one category.
Net Worth
Federer was one of the highest paid athletes in the world as at 2017, ranked below the likes of C. Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, et al. He has pocketed a whopping $116 million in prize money in his career with lots of endorsements. He is currently worth $420 million.
Is He Married? Wife
Federer is tied the knot with a former tennis player named Miroslava Mirka Federer on April 11, 2009. She was born in Bojnice, Slovakia on April 1, 1978, but migrated to Switzerland at a tender age of two. At age 9, she met Martina Navratilova in a tournament in Germany and Navratilova would go on to arrange for Mirka’s training and that was the beginning of Mirka’s spectacular career in tennis.
She later appeared in the 2000 summer Olympic in Beijing where her path crossed with Roger Federer and the ensuing relationship would lead them to the altar the following year. Their wedding took place at Wenkenh of Villa in Riehen, with a small group of friends and family in attendance.
Mirka’s career in tennis came to an end in 2002 following her retirement that was forced by constant foot injury. Upon her retirement, she took up the job of public relations manager for her husband, Roger Federer.
Read Also: Is Serena Williams Married? Who is Her Husband? Height, Weight
Kids
After their marriage in April 2009, the couple welcomed their first set of Identical twin girls on July 23, 2009. The girls were named Myla Rose and Charlene Riva. Mirka gave birth to another set of twin boys in May 6, 2014. They were named Leo and Lennart.
Family Facts
1. Roger Federer’s parents met while the Dad was on a trip to South Africa. The Dad is from Switzerland while the Mother is a South African.
2. Federer was born and raised to be a Roman Catholic. He is still a Catholic and met with Pope Benedict XVI in 2016.
3. He met his wife at the Sydney Olympic in 2000 as both came for national assignments for Switzerland.
4. Federer loves to see his family in the court when he is playing.
