Roger Federer Gives Life Lessons Via Tennis

Written by: Staff on 20th December 2011

Roger Federer Gives Life Lessons Via Tennis

Roger Federer of Switzerland makes a return to David Ferrer of Spain during their at ATP World Tour tennis semi-final match held in O2 Arena in London, Britain on 26 November 2011. EPA/KERIM OKTEN |

BY: Irene

Of Artists, Critics and Fans: My year-end Reflections on Roger Federer

I just received my beautiful Roger Federer fan calendar for 2012, and flipping through the months caused me to reflect on what I have learned from and about Roger Federer and his destiny with tennis.

No matter how much Roger has accomplished and what achievements and hardware he has acquired, there are critics everywhere ready to pounce on him the moment he loses a Slam or a tournament, and the GOAT (greatest of all time) debate begins immediately. Some have even suggested that he needed psychological counseling because he lost Wimbledon a couple of years ago.

His fans never question who the GOAT is, because in our hearts, it’s Roger Federer. I think he has been voted Fan Favorite 9 years in a row now. It’s a record no one can beat. Fans have a totally different view of Roger than the critics. We tend to grieve in private when he loses and we jump for joy when he wins. We write on his website to encourage him or congratulate him. We write on his Facebook wall to lift his spirits or share his happiness. We pray for him. We ask the angels to protect him. We write each other for comfort and consolation after he loses or share our absolute delight when he wins.

It is interesting to me that many artists have understood the fans’ perception of Roger, not just as a great tennis player but as a wonderful human being. They seem to understand and thus are able to capture how we feel about Roger in their sculptures or photographs.

During the 2007 Tennis Masters Cup in Shanghai, artists created the best 8 tennis players competing that year as Terracotta Warriors. They were truly wonderful to behold, and each warrior stood with a tennis racquet in hand as their weapon of choice. They were great visual symbols of what would take place during that week. Roger was the victorious warrior that year.

More recently, the fabulous Annie Leibovitz photographed Roger as King Arthur for the Walt Disney parks campaign “Year of a million dreams”. I have been using that beautiful image as my screensaver since I discovered it. Artists and fans see Roger not just as a great tennis player but also as a symbol of what he represents. We love and admire King Arthur and Roger not for their perfection but for their humanity.

What I have learned from Roger Federer this year is that he doesn’t concern himself with what commentators and critics say about him. He may not have had a spectacular year by his own standards but he always listens to his own heart that tells him “I am passionate about tennis; I believe in myself and I can still win!” It is a lesson not just for tennis but for life.

Irene

Topics: Irene, Roger Federer