Roger Federer (born 8 August 1981) is a Swiss professional tennis player who held the ATP number one position for a record 237 consecutive weeks, and 285 weeks overall. As of 17 October 2011, he is ranked World No. 4 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP). Federer has won a men's record 16 Grand Slam singles titles. He is one of seven male players to capture the career Grand Slam and one of three (with Andre Agassi and Rafael Nadal) to do so on three different surfaces (clay, grass and hard courts). He is the only male player in tennis history to have reached the title match of each Grand Slam tournament at least 5 times. Many sports analysts, tennis critics, and former and current players consider Federer to be the greatest tennis player of all time.
Federer has appeared in an unprecedented 23 career Grand Slam finals, of which 10 were consecutive appearances, and appeared in 18 of 19 finals over the four and a half years from the 2005 Wimbledon Championships through the 2010 Australian Open, the lone exception being the 2008 Australian Open. He holds the record of reaching the semifinals or better of 23 consecutive Grand Slam tournaments over five and a half years from the 2004 Wimbledon Championships through the 2010 Australian Open. At the 2011 US Open he reached a record 30th consecutive Grand Slam quarterfinal.
Federer has won a record five ATP World Tour Finals (shared with Ivan Lendl and Pete Sampras) and 17 ATP Masters Series tournaments (tied second all-time). He also won the Olympic gold medal in doubles with his compatriot Stanislas Wawrinka at the 2008 Summer Olympic Games. He spent eight years (2003–2010) continuously in the top two in the year-end rankings. His rivalry with Rafael Nadal is considered one of the greatest of all time in the sport. In 2011, he was voted the second most trusted and respected human in the world, second only to Nelson Mandela.
As a result of Federer's successes in tennis, he was named the Laureus World Sportsman of the Year for a record four consecutive years (2005–2008). He is often referred to as The Federer Express or abbreviated to Fed Express, or FedEx, the Swiss Maestro or simply Maestro. In 2011, Federer was ranked No. 25 in Forbes Celebrity 100 List.
Federer was born in Binningen, near Basel, to Swiss national Robert Federer and South African-born Lynette. He holds both Swiss and South African citizenships. He grew up in suburban Münchenstein, near Basel, close to the French-German borders and Federer speaks Swiss German, German, French and English fluently, Swiss German being his native language. He was raised as a Roman Catholic and met Pope Benedict XVI while playing the 2006 Internazionali BNL d'Italia tournament in Rome. Like all male Swiss citizens, Federer was subject to compulsory military service in the Swiss Armed Forces. However, in 2003 he was deemed unfit due to a long-standing back problem and was subsequently not required to fulfill his 'obligations'. Federer himself also credits the range of sports he played as a child – he also played badminton and basketball – for his hand-eye coordination. “I was always very much more interested if a ball was involved,” he says. Most tennis prodigies, by contrast, play tennis at the exclusion of pretty much everything else. "Having first played tennis, then badminton, and now back to tennis, I have an appreciation for how certain skills translate from one sport to another. I’ve lost some youthful vigor but am in some ways a better tennis player now because of the badminton years, when I learned how to construct points and control space with chess-like strategy (I used to play a little chess too), the importance of proper footwork, and the creative use of the hand and wrist for finesse shots."
Federer is married to former Women's Tennis Association player Mirka Vavrinec. They met while both competing for Switzerland in the 2000 Sydney Olympics. Vavrinec retired from the tour in 2002 because of a foot injury and has since been working as Federer's public relations manager. They were married in Basel on 11 April 2009, surrounded by a small group of close friends and family at Wenkenhof Villa (municipality of Riehen). On 23 July 2009, Mirka gave birth to twin girls, Myla Rose and Charlene Riva.
2011 IndyCar Series final race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway casualties. British rider, Daniel Wheldon, was killed in an accident involving 15 cars, Sunday, October 16, 2011 local time. Double car Indianapolis 500 champion and IndyCar Series champion in 2005 was thrown into the air and hit the parapet. See his video here. (Photo: REUTERS) www.vivanews.com
Madrid displacing Barca that previously won a landslide victory over Real Mallorca 5-0.
Real Madrid won 4-0 over Espanyol in La League, Real Madrid who come to the stadium Estadio Cornella-El Prat creating goal-tally through trigol Gonzalo Higuain and one goal by Jose Callejon, Monday (3 / 10). With this victory Real Madrid managed to climb from seventh to third in La Liga standings. (Photo: Reuters / Gustau Nacarino) www.vivanews.com
Thursday evening October 27, 2011, the Church of Santa Maria Assunta in Coriano, Italy, packed with thousands of people. They were packed neatly in the church and in the streets. All eyes fixed on the corpse and prayers Italian, Marco Simoncelli, who died at the Grand Prix of Malaysia October 23, 2011. (Photo: REUTERS) Vivanews.com
Levante successfully jump over the two giants of La Liga, Real Madrid and Barcelona.
In this photo shows the sequence of events, the Honda rider Marco Simoncelli seen just before and after the accident, involving Colin Edwards and Valentino Rossi. (Reuters / Dorna)
MotoGP rider Marco Simoncelli on the ground shortly after the accident in Malaysian MotoGP at Sepang Circuit. (Reuters / Samsul Said)
Yamaha rider Colin Edwards of the U.S. left the health center after the crash with Honda rider Marco Simoncelli at the Malaysian Grand Prix at Sepang, October 23, 2011. (REUTERS / Stringer)
A crew tried to calm Paolo, the father of Marco Simoncelli in the pit area. Marco Simoncelli died after an accident in Malaysian MotoGP at Sepang. (REUTERS / Stringer)
Paolo, the father of Marco Simoncelli of Italy, who were entertained in the pit area. Marco Simoncelli has died after an accident in Malaysian MotoGP at Sepang. (REUTERS / Stringer)
MotoGP rider Marco Simoncelli's body was in put in an ambulance at the Sepang Circuit. (REUTERS / Samsul Said)
Real Madrid against Olympique Lyon in the preliminary round Group D Champions League Europe at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium, Madrid, Spain, on Wednesday morning GMT, October 19, 2011. The match ended with the score 4-0 to Real Madrid victory. Photo: REUTERS
Barcelona entertained Viktoria Plzen at the continuation European Champions League Group H at the Camp Nou Stadium, Barcelona, Spain, Thursday, October 20, 2011 early morning hrs. Barca won 2-0 goals by Andres Iniesta and David Villa. Photo: Reuters
English club Chelsea entertain representatives of Belgium, KRC Genk, in the continuation of the European Champions League Group E, at Stamford Bridge Stadium, England, Thursday, October 20, 2011 early morning hrs. The Blues won with a convincing score, 5-0, goal by Raul Meireles, Fernando Torres, Branislav Ivanovic and Salomon Kalou. Photo: Reuters: Eddie Keogh and Toby Melville.
Roger Federer (born 8 August 1981) is a Swiss professional tennis player who held the ATP number one position for a record 237 consecutive weeks, and 285 weeks overall. As of 17 October 2011, he is ranked World No. 4 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP). Federer has won a men's record 16 Grand Slam singles titles. He is one of seven male players to capture the career Grand Slam and one of three (with Andre Agassi and Rafael Nadal) to do so on three different surfaces (clay, grass and hard courts). He is the only male player in tennis history to have reached the title match of each Grand Slam tournament at least 5 times. Many sports analysts, tennis critics, and former and current players consider Federer to be the greatest tennis player of all time.
Federer was born in Binningen, near Basel, to Swiss national Robert Federer and South African-born Lynette. He holds both Swiss and South African citizenships. He grew up in suburban Münchenstein, near Basel, close to the French-German borders and Federer speaks Swiss German, German, French and English fluently, Swiss German being his native language. He was raised as a Roman Catholic and met Pope Benedict XVI while playing the 2006 Internazionali BNL d'Italia tournament in Rome. Like all male Swiss citizens, Federer was subject to compulsory military service in the Swiss Armed Forces. However, in 2003 he was deemed unfit due to a long-standing back problem and was subsequently not required to fulfill his 'obligations'. Federer himself also credits the range of sports he played as a child – he also played badminton and basketball – for his hand-eye coordination. “I was always very much more interested if a ball was involved,” he says. Most tennis prodigies, by contrast, play tennis at the exclusion of pretty much everything else. "Having first played tennis, then badminton, and now back to tennis, I have an appreciation for how certain skills translate from one sport to another. I’ve lost some youthful vigor but am in some ways a better tennis player now because of the badminton years, when I learned how to construct points and control space with chess-like strategy (I used to play a little chess too), the importance of proper footwork, and the creative use of the hand and wrist for finesse shots."
