Roger Federer Talks About First Kiss, Rivals, Tennis, and More
Roger Federer, who ended his eight-month long drought of not winning a title on March 1 after taking home the trophy in the Dubai Duty Free Championships, had a chat with GQ Australia where he talked about very private details in his personal life, tennis, and relationship with some of his rivals.
You will be surprised to find out that Roger met his wife Mirka in Sydney back in 2000 during the Olympics. According to the Swiss athlete, it was his favourite Olympics so far. Why, you would ask? Well, here's why, "That's when we kissed for the first time," said Federer.
Roger and Mirka have been married for five years now. They wed in 2009. Roger and Mirka are parents to twin identical daughters, and they are expecting their third child in 2014. Mirka has always been a great support for Roger in all his matches.
When it comes to tennis relationships with other competitors, Roger said that he can't really say how close he is with other players. Even though he is surrounded with good athletes and rivals, the relationship is different on and off the court. Roger said that it is interesting to discover how their friendships would come about off the tennis court.
If there is one rival athlete that Roger has developed a close relationship with, it is top-ranked Spanish athlete Rafael Nadal. According to Roger, he has lived the most of his professional tennis career with Rafa. The duo had several matches played against each other. They even promoted a tennis tournament together, worked on a charity organisation, and even went to dinner together.
On his relationship with Rafa, Roger said, "I know his family the best, as well." "I know his mum, dad, and sister, yeah our bond goes further back than the one I have with Novak or Andy, and for the reason I feel closest and most connected to Rafa," he added. It is interesting how the rivals in sports sometimes even make the best of friends and acquaintances.
At 32, Roger revealed that he still enjoys playing tennis, unless he doesn't feel good about himself, which is oftentimes a problem and what had caused him a disappointing 2013 season. There were several instances in the 2013 season where he still played even though he wasn't feeling well. "The problem is when I go out on court and I'm not feeling great, I'm still not going to give up, ever." Read more of this story on GQ Australia's official Web site.
Federer's recent victory at the Dubai Duty Free Championships is his sixth title in the said tournament and his 78th tour title overall, according to CNN.