How a hot-headed Roger Federer turned into a calm and in-control graceful champion
How a hot-headed Roger Federer turned into a calm and in-control graceful champion: When he was young, a new curtain had just been installed at the Biel National Tennis Academy to divide the courts.
I initially thought it would be difficult to demolish it due to its heft, but after 10 minutes, I threw my racket, which spun in the air like a helicopter rotor and sliced through the curtain like butter.
Federer reflected on this moment in the documentary Replay, saying, “Everyone stopped playing and looked at me.” It was his punishment to scrub toilets and vacuum desks.
What did his parents think of it all?
When he lost a match, he got really emotional. Make a scene, cry, whatever works. His half-hour post-game sob fests would disturb his parents.
His mother Lynette once said, “We were never unhappy if Johnny lost a match, but we were angry with his behavior after matches.” The way you’ve been acting is like inviting your opponent to come to beat me, I’d tell him. The meaning was clear to him. That’s him, and it’s a characteristic I greatly appreciate.
At times, he was truly nasty. Robert’s father recalled, “Sometimes we felt ashamed of him because he would throw rackets and swear on the court.” “All of a sudden, he grew up and learned to use his enthusiasm productively.”
When his father stuffed Roger’s head in snow to “cool him.”
His father finally had enough of his temper tantrums during practice and stormed off the court, saying, “If you keep behaving like this, I’m just going to leave.”
Here’s what happened next, according to Federer: To show he was serious, he deposited a five swish franc coin next to me and departed, telling me, “I’ll see you at home.” It took me an hour on the tram and bus to get home, so I couldn’t believe he’d leave me.
In those twenty minutes I waited, nothing happened. Still, he failed to show up. The car’s disappearance from the parking lot convinced me that it had indeed been stolen.
Those experiences left an impression on me. Growing up and improving myself are prerequisites to becoming anything.
Federer also revealed to the newspaper Coop that his father once yanked him out of the car and shoved his head in the snow to cool him down after he was complaining about losing a junior event.
In what way did Mirka, Roger’s wife, react the first time she laid eyes on her husband?
According to Federer’s account in The Guardian, his wife told him a story about the encounter. “I was playing club tennis in Switzerland, and everyone kept telling me, ‘Go watch this guy; he’s very good; he’s the future of tennis,'” she recalled.
When she saw me swinging the racket and yelling, her immediate reaction was a mocking, “Yeah!” He seems to be a really talented player. Why does he act like this?
Mirka was also a talented tennis player who reached the world ranking of No. 76 before a foot injury interrupted her career. Her Czechoslovak parents fought hard to get her Swiss citizenship after evacuating the country with her when she was just one year old.
Before, she could train for five or six hours straight. She was demanding, but in a good way; she showed me the ropes.
Sometimes I would go to the tennis center and see her putting in six-hour sessions, and I would think, there’s no way I can do that. After an hour, I’d mentally exit the building since it was so dull. Federer explains, “So for bad behavior, I would get sent home from practice.”
It wasn’t until the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney that they first connected as a couple. He was only 18, and she was a seasoned 21. She remarked, “You’re so young,” after our first kiss.
Statements
Well, I’m almost 19 now, I said. The way you try to cram in another six months, don’t you? Upon which her response was, “OK, you’re a baby.”
Maybe his wife helped him learn to control his feelings and calm down.
Madeleine Barlocher, who coached Federer when he was young, is convinced of this.
How do you account for the fact that he was always agitated as a kid, despite the fact that he now appears to be completely at ease on the court? Because of Mirka… What Barlocher revealed to welovetennis.fr.
It’s a little bit of a mystery to us all… As well as competing in events, she frequently came to the club to play with her pals. The two had really met before the Sydney Olympics.
Who was the most influential person in Federer’s game and also in charge of temperament?
Beyond Mirka and his parents, Barlocher also credits Federer’s first coach after turning professional, the Australian Peter Carter. For the time being, “only Peter Carter could really calm him down [besides Mirka],” Barlocher stated.
Federer has said that Peter Carter is responsible for his tennis technique. For me, Peter is one of the most significant people in the world. And if there’s someone I can thank for my technique today, it’s Peter,” Federer told CNN. Federer was devastated by the news of Carter’s death in a 2002 car crash when he was on his honeymoon.
Roger cried when asked how Peter would feel if he won 20 grand slam titles. I think he didn’t want his talent to go to waste. Therefore, I’d like to think he’d be pleased. When Peter died, I finally realized how fleeting life is. Again he sobs, “I started training pretty hard.”
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