Roger Federer is 39 - and still does not have enough
Roger Federer celebrates his 39th birthday today. For the Swiss there is no reason to quit.
by Michael Rothschädl
last edit: Aug 08, 2020, 05:58 pm
It's been 22 years since Roger Federer was allowed to serve at the ATP Tour level for the first time. At that time, just 16 years old, the newcomer was defeated by the Argentinian Lucas Arnold Ker. Two years later, the Swiss was in his first final, and you should have to wait another three years before Federer won his first Grand Slam tournament.
19 more have been added since then, no other player before and after him has so many major titles to show. For two years, however, there has been a slight damper when it comes to collecting the coveted trophies, the Australian Open 2018 is currently his last title win. Federer, at least 36 years old at the time, beat Rafael Nadal in the final - and thus proved to everyone that one should never copy it.
Comeback - even at 39
And you shouldn't do that now either. Even if he has aged two years since then, even if the knee is pinching more and more vehemently - the Swiss recently even forced an operation. But, exactly this event showed that Federer is far from having enough that a career end is currently out of the question.
Immediately after the operation, Federer began to work on his comeback - even a second operation did not get him down. And is already in good shape today, as coach Severin Lüthi never tires of emphasizing. Soon they will train again with the racket, in any case the Australian Open 2021 is advertised as a declared comeback goal.
Professional through and through
Even off the field, Federer is more successful than almost anyone in white sport: This year the 39-year-old made it to number one of the best-earned athletes in the world - ahead of Lionel Messi and Christiano Ronaldo. Even his projects - such as the launch of his own shoe or a charity tournament in South Africa (which even set the audience record) - are a flawless success for the Swiss.
Yes, Federer is a model athlete. A player who works professionally on and off the pitch and who hardly ever goes wrong. This is probably one of the reasons why the Swiss are still in such good shape today and have the opportunity to make another comeback at the age of 39. And that's probably one of the reasons why Roger Federer is still to be expected at 39 years of age.