Roger Federer

Roger Federer is currently the number 1 ranked professional tennis player in the world. Like Michael Jordan, he has taken his sport to another level and yet seems to be a regular person and a real nice guy. What's his secret?

Roger is Swiss and he grew up in the German speaking part of Switzerland. He is also fluent in French and English and conducts interviews in all 3 languages, sometimes simultaneously. Roger's dad is Swiss and his mom is from South Africa. He handles his own business affairs on the tour which is almost unheard of and everyone likes him. He has a Slovakian born Swiss girlfriend, Mirka Vavrinec who, I'm sure, likes him very much.

Switzerland is an interesting place. It is very small, has a relatively small population, and 4 official languages: German, French, Italian and Romansh. They don't have a President or a Prime Minister, but a 7 member council handles federal and international affairs. Every male citizen is a member of the Swiss armed forces. To my knowledge, the Swiss are religiously tolerant and love their freedom and no one has attacked them for that reason.

Switzerland is famous for their watches, fondue, the Alps, secretive and utterly trustworthy banking, the Pope's body guards and a couple really good tennis players including Roger and female pro Martina Hingis. My wife and I visited St. Moritz a famous ski village and past host of the Winter Olympics. The scenery and the city were beautiful, but it was also very expensive. We saw lots of people on bikes, sailing on the lake and out hiking. I figured with the cost of food, accommodation and gas being so high the locals had to spend lots of time working or with hobbies that didn't cost too much. The cool crisp air and the vertical climbs keep everyone healthy. Is this the key to Roger's success?

According to the 2006 Guinness book of world records, Roger has won 16 consecutive Open finals. His future goals are to stay No. 1 and to do charity work. He has set up the Roger Federer Foundation to introduce and fund sport for disadvantaged children around the world, but especially in Africa. His advice to young men and women is to keep going when times are hard because you learn a lot, keep to your long-term goals and love what you are doing. He also appreciates the support he gets especially from his parents and family. Currently his website lists 12 grand slam titles, 51 tournament singles titles and 7 doubles titles.

Roger's tennis play and style match the best players now and he might even be the best player ever. Trying to explain what happens when he is on the court is like trying to explain the movie "The Matrix" or a religious experience. His movement and vision are art that defies description. He probably won't be coming to Morrison anytime soon, but if you ever get the chance to seem him in action I'm sure it will be worth the price of admission. When you do, let me know his secret.

(by Marc Adami, Guest Columnist)