Roger Federer Foundation raises over 10 million Swiss Francs in 2021 for COVID-19, other causes
The Roger Federer Foundation released its annual report for the financial year 2021 on Monday, revealing that it raised more than 10 million Swiss Francs that went to its various programs last year. This marked the highest ever amount the foundation has raised in a single year since its inception.
The 20-time Grand Slam champion founded the organization in 2003, mainly aimed at improving the lives of children in his home country of Switzerland and southern Africa.
Foreword by @rogerfederer for @rogerfedererfdn Annual Report! https://t.co/4rMQiufnZm
According to the latest report, the foundation received over two million Swiss Francs, more than what they collected in 2020, as donations. The revenue would have been even higher had it not been for the pandemic, which prevented the "Match for Africa" exhibition event from taking place. In 2020, the exhibition raised a reported 3.5 million Swiss Francs for charity.
The financial disclosure report was preceded by a foreword from the former World No. 1 himself where he thanked the donors who contributed to the noble cause. He was also extremely thankful to his wife Mirka, who oversaw the memorabilia auction in June that raised £1.3 million.
"A highlight [in June] was our auction of 320 items of memorabilia by Christie’s auction house in support of the Roger Federer Foundation. It was a major task that was primarily overseen by my wife, Mirka. This unprecedented occasion could only be realized thanks to her careful storage and cataloging of my numerous outfits, racquets and shoes throughout the years," Federer wrote.
"For the first time, the foundation received more than 10 million Swiss francs in donations for our programmes last year. Especially in these times of crisis, this solidarity cannot be taken for granted and I would like to thank all our donors from the bottom of my heart," he added.
The World No. 27 remarked that none of this would have been possible without the "great people" who helped him along the way. Having celebrated his 40th birthday last year, the Swiss added that he was looking forward to what the future had in store for him.
"I am grateful every day for the people that have helped me get to where I am today and have guided and provided me with insights across many difficult decisions. Seeing that I have so many great people in my corner, I look forward to this next phase of my life with great optimism," he wrote. "I have no doubt that it will be filled with new, exciting and joyful things, with all of you by my side."
"My experience in Doha illustrated to me that my journey as an elite athlete isn’t over yet" - Roger Federer
Roger Federer also highlighted an important moment from 2021 during the foreword -- his return to action at the Qatar Open in March after more than a year on the sidelines. Although he fell in the quarterfinals to eventual winner Nikoloz Basilashvili, the 20-time Grand Slam champion declared that the experience woke him up to the fact that he was not yet done with his tennis career.
"After many months of battling injury, my return to the tour in March, after my first operation, highlighted and energized me to continue my tennis career," Federer wrote. "I’m grateful for every minute I was able to spend with my fans and tennis family on court."
Roger Federer lands in Doha for the 2021 Qatar ExxonMobil Open.
Federer, the 2005-'06 and 2011 Doha champion, has not played competitively since 30 January 2020 in the Australian Open semi-finals and will compete in #Doha for the first time since 2012. https://t.co/oRF2mbWRV1
The 40-year-old reiterated his statement from recent interviews, noting that he was slowly but surely on the road to recovery, and promised his fans that he would soon return to tennis "at the highest level."
"My experience in Doha illustrated to me that my journey as an elite athlete isn’t over yet," he said. "The progress I make every day strengthens my belief that I will be healthy and strong enough to return to the tennis court at the highest level."