Legendary Roger Federer delivered an emotional speech after he was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame at Newport. Federer admitted it is one of the greatest honours of his life. Federer’s wife, Mirka, welcomed him on stage before praising the Swiss Maestro.
Federer, 45, had a glorious career, winning 20 Slams on the tour and won a total of 103 ATP titles.
“It’s amazing to see yourself in a place like this, to walk through the Hall of Fame, to immerse myself in the history of this sport. That means everything to me,” Federer said. “To read the stories of my greatest heroes and to realise, I mean to truly realise for the first time, that I have a place here. This is one of the greatest honours of my life.”
Federer added that fame was never part of his goal, but he wanted to do something which he loved doing.
“We play tennis, we’re tennis players. That for me is what it’s about: the sense of play,” Federer said. “Yes, this sport takes work and practice. But the sense of play always carried me through. And when the work and play blend together, that’s the best feeling of all.”
Roger started his tennis journey as a ball boy in Basel when he was only 13 years old. From there, he rose through the ranks and became one of the most successful players in the history of the sport.
“I’m standing against the back wall, hands behind me, eyes on the ball. I’ll never forget how the game looked from there and how it felt,” Federer said. “The thrill of standing so close to the players, feeding them the ball, handing them the towel, seeing them sweat, watching them fight it out, figure it out — the adversity, the intensity. I remember the next morning, my legs were gone. Standing all day is a lot of work.”
Federer said he always wanted to stay true to himself while playing at the top level.
“I tried to show my love for the game. Because it really mattered to me, and I also wanted it to matter to you,” Federer said. “To be worthy of your attention, worthy of your attendance, because people don’t have to come watch us play. They come to be entertained, inspired, excited. They could always decide to go somewhere else, but they chose tennis, they chose us.”
“This boy from Basel thanks you for the incredible honour,” Federer said. “And I thank you all of you for sharing the journey that brought us together.”
