The journey of Roger Federer From teenage tantrums to sublime success
As a teenager, Roger Federer was a talented but combustible young boy. As a 15-year-old at the Swiss National Tennis Centre at Ecublens, Federer had to write down his sporting goals. While others wanted to "turn professional" or "make the top 100", Federer said he wanted to "break the top ten and then become number one".
15 Years back, who was to think in the wildest of dreams that this young boy named Roger Federer will spin the whole Tennis world with his magical game.
"I believe Roger is ambitious because he isn't 100 per cent Swiss," said Seppli Kacovski, Federer's first coach. "His father is Swiss, and the calmness Roger has comes from his father, but the ambition and willpower come from his mother [who is South African]."
Calmness was not always a Federer trait, however. "I used to throw my racket around like you can't imagine," he admitted. "I was getting kicked out of practice sessions non-stop when I was 16."
When Federer was 17, he decided to see a sports psychologist, who helped move him from the explosive McEnroe end of the psychological spectrum towards the composure of Swedish legend Björn Borg.
One difference with Borg, however, is Federer's reaction to success. "There are people who don't smile when they win, and there are people who smile for weeks afterwards. I'm the kind of guy who lets the tears flow," Federer said after winning his first Wimbledon title in July 2003.
As almost 99% of you will be aware, that Roger Federer became a famous name after he defeated legendary Pete Sampras in the 4th Round of Wimbledon, 2001.
Thou, his first Grand Slam victory came at Wimbledon in 2003 when on July 6, 2003, Federer became the first Swiss man to win a grand slam title when he beat Mark Philippoussis in straight sets at Wimbledon.
The journey continued & reached a new mile-stone when on 2nd February, 2004, Roger Federer became ATP No. 1 for the first time after winning his first Australian Open.
Rene Stauffer, the author of the most sold Roger Federer biography titled, "Quest for Perfection", recently said, "I think the key point [in Federer's career] is everything that happened at the beginning of 2004 – after he won Wimbledon in 2003 he won the Tennis Masters Cup, he won the Australian Open in 2004 and got to number one,"
"It was like a big liberation for him. He said that at that point he could have stopped playing since he had achieved everything he wanted. Everything that has happened since then has been like a bonus for him."
Stauffer describes Federer as "a puzzle that took a long time to finish but now everything is that much more beautiful".
"He has everything he needs – he is the complete package now. He has the mental strength and athletic abilities which are just wonderful to watch," he said.
"It's no wonder he's been voted World Sportsman of the Year four times that shows he's not only a tennis player but also a sportsman that could probably go far in many other sports."
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