Roger this! Paul Kimmage of The Times, U.K. did a fantastic interview with Roger Federer at last week’s Basel tournament. Click here to read the entire piece, which was published this weekend. Here are some of the highlights.
The theme of the interview is Roger’s positive attitude and the way he uses this cheerful way of thinking to stay on top of the tennis world. To underline how unique Federer’s mentality is for a tennis Champion, the piece begins by stating what Federer is not:
How did Roger Federer become the greatest? He was not born in Sweden (Bjorn Borg). He was not shaped by a dominant parent (Ivan Lendl). He is not fuelled by rage (Jimmy Connors) or tortured by demons (John McEnroe). He has never had sex in Nobu (Boris Becker), smoked crystal meth (Andre Agassi) or been afflicted with odd sleeping habits (Pete Sampras). He is as affable as Tim Henman. . . He did not marry a supermodel (Roddick). He does not make fun of his rivals (Novak Djokovic) or pick continually at the crack in his backside (Nadal). He has worse fashion sense than Andy Murray. How does he explain it?
Now wait just a second, here, Mr. Kimmage! Roger Federer’s fashion sense – with the exception of a certain figure skating outfit – is infinitely better than Andy Murray’s! But I’ll use Roger as my inspiration and refrain from going negative.
Here’s Roger explaining how his sunny disposition keeps him motivated:
“I’m a positive person, a very positive thinker. That’s why I like the more positive approach of ‘I love winning’, because to hate losing, to me, is a bit negative. I guess my love for the sport started as a little boy watching Becker and Edberg facing off in the Wimbledon final. I dreamed about it but I never thought it would happen to me. It’s so difficult to keep winning and to keep your love for the game because of all the travelling and the sacrifices, but I just said, ‘I’m not going to let that happen to me. I’m going to take a positive approach that travelling is great and that I’m going to see different cultures and places I would never see if I wasn’t a tennis player’. My wife loves it. I love it, so ‘let’s have a good time because it’s not going to last until I am 70’. And so far that approach has worked for me.”
This positive attitude leads to friendly relations with even his fiercest rival, Rafael Nadal:
“I’m surprised myself by the degree to which we (he and Nadal) actually get along because we’ve had a very intense rivalry and you could say he has hurt my career and that I’ve hurt his career, but we’ve actually helped each other become the players we are today. And the rivalry has helped the game. It’s nice that the two greatest players in tennis, or in a sport, actually get along well, because normally there is all this hate and it’s so negative, and I don’t like that. We’ve had enough controversy in recent years with athletes and it’s a welcome change.”
But what about after the Australian Open, when Roger stood on the podium and said losing to Nadal was “killing” him?
“The thing that was killing me was having to talk while crying. What I meant was, ‘I wish I could stop crying and could talk normally and give Rafa the stage he deserves and not make everybody feel so bad’. This was upsetting me more than having lost the match. The last thing I wanted was for people to feel bad for me. I played a great tournament. I was happy with the way I played. I wish I would have won, but I had to accept, and accepted without a problem, that Rafa was better on that day. So it was [misinterpreted].”
What it felt like to claim his GOAT status later in the year:
“It’s a big relief, especially getting first [the win in] Paris and then the 15 [Grand Slam titles] at Wimbledon within a month. I was shell-shocked that it happened so quickly. To go from being criticised [at the Australian Open] for not being the same anymore to being called the greatest ever was a very fast turn.”
On Mirka’s positive influence:
“It goes way beyond what I thought as a teenager that marriage would be. And the babies . . . phew [exhales], that just gives a different dimension to life. To see the fire in the eyes of my wife, waking up 15 times a night if she has to . . . to see that and knowing what she would do for me, knowing what she would do for them, is very emotional.“
The piece ends with some great news for Fed fans:
“You can definitely play your greatest tennis until 32 or 33, it’s just a matter of how you look at it. . .Many people were asking me, ‘When are you going to retire?’ And I said, ‘Well, I’m definitely going to play until the 2012 Olympics’, but that was to shut them up, really. It depends how fit you are, but I would like to play beyond that, and Mirka has said that she would like our two daughters to see me play. So they need to grow a little bit and I need to play a little bit, but we’ll see where it takes us.”
Roger’s next chance to win comes at the season-ending World Tour Finals, which run from November 22-29 in London. I hope he finishes the year smiling!
Tags: ATP, Federer, Nadal, tennis, World Tour Finals
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“To see the fire in the eyes of my wife, waking up 15 times a night if she has to . . . to see that and knowing what she would do for me, knowing what she would do for them, is very emotional.“
OMG…..I hope that lasts forever. it’s so rare to find that kind of love at age 19 1/2 and stay with it.
NO WONDER HE’S SO WELL LOVED WORLD WIDE.
thanks ff.
This is one of the sweetest tributes a man could give to his wife.
I very much agree with you guys – wonderful words from Roger on the fantastic Mrs. Federer.
And I think it will definitely last!
just read the whole piece. really good interview. it amazes me how clear and level-headed he is from a young age. it took me forever to be that way.
Hey, at least you got there! I’m still working on it, I think.
yes, just read it. really great interview (except for the fashion sense part – i mean, really? i guess he was thinking of wimbledon 2009 when he wrote that). i love his thoughts on the now infamous “god, it’s killing me” quote.
and i love him and mirka together! they’re so cute and adorable and shiny and all sparkles and rainbows. ♥♥♥ i just wish they’d post another picture of their twins. :p
I read the interview. But the part…”He has worse fashion sense than Andy Murray?”..WTF? Have they seen Fed in a suit?
But it was a really lovely interview,he’s honest and positive.
I know! I guess he was struggling to find something that he has worse than Andy Murray.
I loved the interview and agree with all of the comments. (I don’t think Andy will be getting a Vogue spread any time soon.) What I liked best was Roger’s positive attitude and his determination to keep positive despite commentators’ attempts to drag him down. I also like his attitude toward competing — wanting to win, not fearing to lose; not wanting other guys to lose; not making rivalries personal. In my book, he’s truly exceptional across the board. I’m a shameless Fedophile.
It’s so nice to hear that Roger enjoys tennis and the tour – especially after reading Agassi’s “I hate tennis” book (I admire the honesty, but it’s tough to hear) and all of Safin’s “I can’t wait to leave the tour” comments. Not all champions have to be miserable to do well!
I just read the whole interview (copying you, lorrie!) I loved what he had to say about Rafa.
I thought it was funny that the interviewer had find something to nitpick about Pete, but all he could come up with were his odd sleeping habits. He was a great champion, but he had trouble sleeping!
As for Andy Murray’s fashion sense — was Simon Reed ghostwriting?
Oh, but Roger does have weird sleeping habits. (At least, I seem to recall an early interview and Stauffer’s bio both mentioning him trying to sleep-concuss himself with his pillow when he’s on his stomach.) Trying too hard, that intro – but that aside, great article; thanks for pointing to it!
Sorry for posting this in here: Djokovic just won Bercy, I just want to say what a year he had, because I liked Federer sooooo much, I don’t want to accept he is good, but I am going to say that he is good.
awww what a nice interview from FED!
Wow, ranjolie! That’s quite an admission coming from you.
I agree that Djokovic has been very good since the US Open. Glad to see him back in the mix, but of course I’m hoping Roger avenges the Basel loss in London!
It really is, and I have to say that I am responsible for at least 2 of Roger jinxes: 1. When Roger beat Djokovic in the US Open 2007, I was so happy that I wrote in someone’s blog that Djokovic was good, but not as good as Roger and as long as Roger was playing, Djokovic wouldn’t get a GS title, less than 6 months later, Djokovic claimed the Aussie Open (under circumstances that I don’t wish to remember)
2. When Roger barely beat DelPo in Roland Garros, I wrote in this blog that real champions come back from behind like Roger did, and what do you know, less than 6 months later, who came from behind at the US Open?
awwww i loved the part where the interviewer asked when Mirka told Roger she was pregnant…
“In Australia, before the Del Potro match. I beat him 6-3 6-0 6-0, so it gave me wings, you could say.”
my heart just melted!
He found it it was twins before the Delpotro match. They found out that Mirka was pregnant earlier, while in Doha I think.
That’s a great piece — Roger is just a nice person, I think. Sure,
he might be a little arogant at times, and some tire of his constant winning and being on top of the heap — but he’s the greatest ! When
he lost in Australia, it was funny how quickly the press was ready to write him off. But then when he won the FO and Wim. he was the man of the hour ! Congratulations to him for a great year. Also very happy that he has such a loving wife and now a family. Our best to you, Roger !!
one of the best fed interviews ever! ff, you rock for posting and choosing great highlights. i also read the whole thing and love roger even more! he is an amazing human being! i love hearing his thoughts on tennis, nadal, career, marriage, kids and life. this also provides great reflection on an incredible year. the only way to make it even better would be a win at WTF and finishing #1!
i know i was disappointed by the basel defeat by nole and early exit in bercy, but now, i will try to focus on being grateful that roger exists and is such a wonderful person and player. he continues to elevate the sport to new heights and makes it a pleasure to be a tennis fan! he has accomplished so much already, on and off court, that from this point on… i will focus on how much i love to see him winning, rather than hate to see him losing!
the interview was well done… fed really is amazingly articulate and he absolutely adores rafa! reed obviously has no clue about what “dress sense” is… fed is one of the best dressed tennis players of all time! both on and off the court! to compare him with murray, who’s possibly the worst dressed player on tour is ridiculous!
i guess we have to consider that this article is from a uk paper and i’m pretty sure fed’s wimbledon nike kit was negatively received, especially there. he is totally wrong on the murray fashion assessment. i’ve never seen murray dressed sharply. if anything, his clothing on and off court seems to be traditional and uninspiring. i think fed usually looks great because he dresses in a very modern and classic way. mirka loves fashion too and no doubt has helped fed go from ‘prom king’ to a classy, elegant man. she probably read the article and was like, ‘what the hell are they talking about?!’
upon reading again, i suppose they are saying murray’s fashion sense is bad, but fed’s is worse? either way, rubbish!
Great interview. I love the way he describe how “special” and “proud” he feels to be a husband and father. It appears that his love for Mirka has not dimmed in the 9-10 years of being with her, and he truly appreciates her for being a wonderful partner, wife and mother. I also like his positive view on tennis, and life. That is probably why he has been so successful. It’s nice to see someone succeeding and doing something that he truly loves. It makes me proud to see that Roger and Rafa can be rivals, but at the same time, they can be respectful, and like one other. We are very lucky to have Roger and Rafa in the sport of tennis, during our lifetime. If you get a chance, read Rafa’s recent interview. Rafa admits that the person he admires the most in tennis is RF. Roger works very hard and deserves all the rewards that have come his way. I hope Roger and Rafa stay healthy for a long time, so they can enjoy their passion, and entertain us at the same time.