Justine Henin claims it was Roger Federer, not Kim Clijsters, who really inspired her return to tennis – by sparking her longing for the one Major she hasn’t won: Wimbledon. These quotes come from her t.v. appearance on RTL-TVI:
“Roger Federer’s victory at Roland Garros spoke to me much more (than Clijster’s comeback) because it made me think of a lot of things in relation to Wimbledon.”
“I felt a lack and maybe for the first time I really felt that Wimbledon was missing from my list of trophies.”
“Winning Wimbledon is a dream. It’s more than an aim, it’s really a dream.”
“I’m giving myself the means to look to achieve great things but will that be enough to win Wimbledon? At the moment I don’t have the answer to that. I know I’m going to work for it though.”
Wow, that’s quite amazing, isn’t it? That one victory could re-ignite Justine Henin’s competitive fire?
Quotes via Sporting Life and thanks to HCFoo’s Tennis Blog for finding them!
Tags: Clijsters, Federer, French Open, Henin, tennis, Wimbledon
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well, roger is always a good source of inspiration!
thank you roger for winning the french open and letting your victory reignite the competitive fire within my favorite women's tennis player, justine! now i definitely have more people to root for and women's tennis will be more interesting to follow!!
roger is one of the best role models and greatest inspirations out there.
but i still suspect, that seeing the state of the wta and kim's achievement may have influenced her as well. it's good for the wta.
watching roger play inspires me to play… except i'm not that talented!
nice to hear that rog got her going and thinking about wimbledon. it makes sense, to think about the one big goal or dream you have yet to accomplish, especially when your career has been very successful. remember the joy, relief, happiness and deep sense of pride and accomplishment fed expressed when he won the FO? i will remember watching that forever. who wouldn't be inspired to go for it?!
i really enjoyed tennis when both fed and henin were #1 and playing at such a high level. their complete and elegant games, so much fun to watch! i wonder what roger thinks about this. i would imagine he would be excited for her. i think he admired her game a lot. the one handed backhand is back!
As you know, i admire Justine's game very much, but i think that when she says something like that, she is full of BS. Maybe she is trying to convince herself about her reasons for returning – and Roger's career slam is a convenient excuse – but i am sure @_aerynsun is absolutely correct: this decision has much more to do with the state of women's tennis throughout this year and by Kim's extremely successful comeback. After all, if all of her motivation comes from the men's tour and she has no interest in women's game at all, maybe somebody could suggest that she should play in men's tournament. Thank goodness, she at least allowed a possibility of an unconscious reaction to Kim's comeback. Anyway, Justine, i hope that all this explaining is over – it's time to just shut up and start playing already. That is what we like about you the most – your complete, precise and powerful game.
Henin should have stayed retired. One of the most boring personalities in tennis. Tennis needs new Tiger Woods in women's tennis with character and personality and let them expand their personality. They have almost none and they are in entertainment business competing against other sports. Tennis Federation makes players non-emotional and without character for the last 20 years and has become one of the boring sports in the business. Federer, Sampras, Henin, all boring to listen to. This reflects on TV ratings and revenues. If you look at the women's U.S. finals this year, there were alot of empty seats in the upper deck. Wonder why?
Correction, Federer is already being hailed as the Tiger Woods of Tennis.No need to assign it to WTA ok?And as to your issue of Women's Finals ratings being low in tv ratings and revenues may be true ,in contrast, the Men's Finals however drew high ratings.(please refer to this since you are ignorant of such things…http://msn.foxsports.com/tennis/story/10081016/Dr... and so pls defer by saying that Federer is Boring.If what you said is true then everytime he plays, the courts and the stadiums must have been empty no?.(LOL)So i suggest, if you have something to say about Henin and WTA in general then rant all you want but please leave Federer alone because they are entirely in different boats so to speak.Ranking,Ratings, sponsorships, fanbase you name it and Roger has it.It must be tough to be BORING no?lol!
You have it backwards, Tiger Woods is the Roger Federer of golf. Federer is by far the superior athlete, performer, and human being compared to Tiger.
In this new report – http://sports.espn.go.com/sports/tennis/news/stor... – the quotes attributed to Justine already sound much more honest and sensible about her motivation and reasons for her decision to un-retire.
Suggesting that people like Federer, Sampras and Henin are bad for tennis reveals a very high level of ignorance in the person who proposes such nonsense. Every sport benefits from having strong top-ranked players and these three are all perfect examples.
Excatly Mark, to speak about Federer and Henin in such a manner is beyond me and pure ignorance, they are both great people and wonderful to watch, great for the sport indeed.
I think if you're a true blood Henin fan this news wouldn't be a surprise at all… She had been a Fed fan for a long time… and if you'll study her lines in most interviews, she said she's been patient enough about her announcement to play pro tennis again… hence, her decision must be couple of months ago (since RG perhaps)… so she says KC win "Subconsciously, might have had an impact".. it somehow confirms her decision without being fully aware of it….
Mark & Fae: Just because I have different opinions on Federer, Sampras and Henin, you have to resort to calling names as "IGNORNACE" ? You like these players and I respect your opinion but I don't call you pure ignorance. Do you expect everybody to like them?
then why bother reading on and commenting if these players are not to your liking? Move on and go to your fave players site or hellhole or whatever.
If you read what i actually wrote, you will see that i never called you any names – that is not my style. You implied that certain players were bad for tennis and i replied that this statement revealed your ignorance. That is not a name – it is a fact. Nowhere did i suggest that everyone should like these players, but the ones you named are three of the greatest players who have ever played the game! If you carefully read what is actually written, you may learn things sometimes. By the way, Ivan Lendl, for example, was definitely more boring than the three you mentioned, but, being the strong and true number one for several years, even he was very good for the game. Among other things, champions like that always force others to improve, so the game, in turn, improves together with them.
Hey sfjp, i think their right… =(
innocence – lacking a knowledge of evil
ignorance – is the state of not knowing.
Right on!
well i'm not surprised that roger's win in RG inspired justine. roger has inspired the entire mens field to become better all round players on and off the court and now he's helping the wta. see, it is all about roger here….. : )
Federer and Henin are two of the most charismatic characters on court. They don't grunt, they don't smash racquets or scream.
In the demented world we live in, that is considered to be "boring". But also in the demented world we live in, friends and acquaintances who are casual tennis fans come up to me to talk about Federer's wins and losses, and Henin's retirement/unretirement. Either they're REALLY, REALLY bored, or certain haters see things the way they want to see them.
I don't know why I bother. If that's not ignorance, then that's an error in judgement. Bring it!
roger is an idol for henin too. henin had said that roger was the only tennis player that she watched. so it's normal.
Federer and Henin are the reasons why the Tennis has become passive European style sports. They are in world entertainment business and the American fans are no longer flocking to see them as compared to 20 years ago. All these U.S. tournaments are barely half full. They are like Soccer which is big in Europe but not in U.S. You see Serena Williams slamming her racket and breaking it. and get penalized for it. If this happens in baseball, if the player break the bat with your knees in front of the unpire in frustration, nothing happens. The Tennis is the only sport that took out personality of the players and they reacts like robots. Past European players such as tempermental Hana Manlikova, Navatilova, Everett, Austin had personality with performance and the fans reacted positively. This is a business competing for other sports and tennis has not adjusted well. Every year in the U.S. tournaments, you will see less fans and they don't care. If you asked the average people in the U.S. streets who is Federer or Henin, majority will not know. That's how popular tennis is in U.S. The T.V. advertiser know this well that they are not a main revenue business. They need to change.
Your ignorance is showing again.
First, learn to spell the names (at least those of your favorite players) correctly – Navratilova, Mandlikova, Evert.
Second, look at how much each of them was earning annually in early 1980s, when they were in their prime, from tennis and especially from appearing in advertising worldwide.
Third, look at how much Federer and Henin were earning annually from tennis and especially from advertising worldwide in mid-2000s.
Fourth, compare. Do you think those big international companies would throw much more of their money on players that are less popular or on less popular sports? Of course they would not.
Fifth, i know this may be hard for you to believe, but the fact is that we the American sports fans may not necessarily always be right. Sometimes some of us are just a little teeny-weeny tiny bit chauvinistic. That is why, when saying that Federer and Henin are good for the sport, i have always been talking about the worldwide appeal of these great champions.
Thankfully, not everything is about the USA.
. i myself am not American, so do not know anything about baseball, so don't care what happens in baseball. I'm wondering in which other country baseball is a big sport apart from the USA. Mention the name of the highest paid baseball player to an average person on the streets of Europe, Africa, Asia, or Australian, and they won't know who it is. On the other hand, ask the same people from the people WHO Roger Federer or Rafael Nadal is, then I can bet you $1000 that they'll know who they are. Same to Justin Henin. I know because I live in Europe & Africa. I can assure you that almost every single person in the UK knows who Roger Federer is, whether the person watches tennis or not….simply because Wimbledon is so big here in the UK & he's won it 6 times. You can also be sure every Swiss knows him….& every spaniard knows who Rafa is. And from reading various news sites, I sure as hell know that despite not having top-ranked players, people in places like Dubai & Japan are avid tennis followers.
By the way, do you know that roger Federer has the biggest number of fan-base in the entire world in ANY sport? Just do a little google. Quite a feet for such a boring personality!
Also, a casual web-browse would have revealed to you that the US-Open final drew very high ratings, so these 'average' Americans on the streets seem to know who Roger Federer is.
But as I said before, thankfully, not everything revolves around USA. We in Europe & Africa are greatly enjoying the sport with great rivalries & personalities such as Roger, Rafa, Clijsters & Serena. Henin's comeback can only be good news to the sport.:)
Didn't the USTA just report record-breaking attendance records for the US Open 2009?
Yes, Mia, you are absolutely right. The previous record was set in 2008 and this year's attendance eclipsed that record. Considering the economy, this is a remarkable evidence that tennis today is more popular then ever, even in USA. But facts rarely bother people who are ignorant and apparently prefer to stay that way. This is just a general observation and is not meant to be taken personally by anyone in particular.
And just to add about tennis popularity, I agree that it could be more popular, but it is definitely growing….mainly thanks to the great rivalry of Roger Federer & Rafael Nadal. Just speaking from a UK point of view, thanks to this epic rivalry (tears fedophiles) the BBC has now acquired rights to air Wimbledon, French open & Autralian Open. This is due to the growing popularity of the sport thanks to the ATP's charismatic top ranked players. Soon enough, it may also seal the deal for the US open. During the durations of the 3 opens, the BBC2 airs as many matches as they can to the full & for very important ones, i.e. those featuring Federer, Nadal or Murray are switched to BBC1 and prime-time news is even delayed or switched to an alternative channel…..because they are that popular! Online BBC viewers also get a selection of ALL matches going on, be it on centre-court or court 16.
Mark replies " Your ignorance is showing again. "
Name calling again and you say this is not my style but it shows your child side of your behavior. Maybe you need your diapers changed.
If you want, you may consider us even now.
Mark writes:
"Second, look at how much each of them was earning annually in early 1980s, when they were in their prime, from tennis and especially from appearing in advertising worldwide."
Up to this year, Henin still has less career earnings than Navratilova. Martina Navratilova earned $21.65 million in her career, more than Henin when she retired at slightly above $20 million. So what does it matter?
http://sports.espn.go.com/sports/tennis/usopen06/...
Nice try, sfjp… It matters a lot. Especially if one looks at one small difference – Justine retired when she was 25 and Martina played professionally until she was 49! That is why i wrote that you should compare their ANNUAL earnings. It matters because it shows that tennis is much more successful in a business sense now, with "boring" players, than it was when those whom you mentioned as your favorite examples were the top attractions. And don't forget to look at their advertising earnings too. Annual numbers, of course.
It matters a lot, if you take into consideration that Martina played professionally until she was 49 and Justine has not played a single match since she left the game at the age of 25, which is why you should compare their annual earnings. It matters because it shows that tennis is actually much more successful business-wise now, with players whom you called boring, than it was in the early 1980s when Martina and Chris were in their prime – in spite of the fact that their rivalry was exciting and they were both great players.
Mark:
If you take into consideration of earnings of Navratilova's $21.65 million in the 80's, todays money would be worth between $35-$40 million. It will take Henin time to reach that goal. If she stays healthy, should have no problem. Best wishes to Henin.
Actually, Martina's last paid professional appearance was in 2006 which is much closer to today in terms of money. It also means that she benefited from increased popularity of tennis by earning money for over 30 years including the time when Federer and Henin were already in their prime and, in large part thanks to their popularity, prize money was constantly going up. That's why the only way to compare their earnings farily is to compare them on annual basis.
As for popularity of tennis in USA, as commenter Mia reminded us above, US Open had record attendance in 2008 and then that record was eclipsed again this year. These are the facts.
Mark;
Someways your right. However, Martina was the first women to earn $1 million in 1982, and $2 million in 1984 (which is double the value of todays dollar). In 1984, she was number 4 in most money made by athletes in the world. Most of the $21 million was earned early in her career. To put in perspective, As of 9/09, Martina has won 1,442 in her career, Henin, just 493. Henin ranks number 7 in career winning percentages behind Court, Evert, Graf, Navratilova, Seles, and Serena Williams. Most singles won, Navratilova at 167 titles versus 41 for Henin. Most doubles title, Navratilova at 177, Henin ?. Most consecutive years winning at least singles title, 21, Henin ?. Other than money, Henis is still in a different category as to date.
Get back to the point, the term "boring" on Henin was not meant to be offensive. The sport no longer tolerates bad behavior. In McEnroe's day, the umpires were stunned when he mishaved, ofen conflicted about defaulting him and removing the main draw. Tennis officials nowdays don't allow the players to get out of control. Players know that if they misbehave they have three strikes and they are out. Politeness hasn't returned, but self-control has.
I suspect the biggest reason Americans lost interest in men's tennis is this: foreigners. Americans love to see Americans win. It doesn't matter what the sport is.
You are still not comparing annual earnings (from any year you want) of Martina Navratilova who is one of the greatest female tennis players ever (i have never argued with that) with those of Justine Henin during her best years 2006 and 2007 – not just from tennis but from advertising as well. If you do, you will see that i am completely right and that your original statements about the Belgian and, even more so, about Roger Federer were totally wrong. Comparing annual earnings of leading players is a sure way to compare popularity of the game at different times because money spent on tennis by fans and corporate sponsors is a good indication of the sport's popularity. The fact is, worldwide, tennis is more popular then ever – even in the USA where some of the fans unfortunately are unable to appreciate greatness of non-American players, but most are fortunately smarter than that – and both Henin and Federer, in different measures of course (his contribution is certainly greater than hers), are part of the reason for such increased popularity.
Meanwhile, my vacation is over and i am back to work, which means that i don't have any more time to spend repeating the same things that should really be obvious to everyone.