“The way Roger Federer comes across, how he performs, his attitude in the sport, that’s someone you want to look up to" - Adam Peaty

Olympic champion Adam Peaty [inset] believes Roger Federer is an inspiration for his longevity in the sport

Three-time Olympic gold medalist swimmer Adam Peaty recently revealed that he finds Roger Federer the most inspiring athlete in terms of the latter's longevity, quality, behavior, and "attitude."

Federer has been active on tour since turning pro in 1998. Although injuries have curtailed his presence in recent years, the 20-time Major champion has had a long career and maintained that he has gas left in his tank.

Once Federer returns to action later this year at the Laver Cup and Swiss Indoors, he will be active on tour for a whopping 24 years.

Adam Peaty, on the other hand, has been part of the swimming circuit for over a decade. The 27-year-old recently spoke exclusively to the Evening Standard, where he laid bare his admiration for Roger Federer's sustained excellence over a long period of time.

The Brit believes the 40-year-old is easy to idolize given his "class" and longevity.

“I’m inspired by all the top players but Roger Federer is the one where I think he’s just class, isn’t he?” said Adam Peaty. “The way he comes across, how he performs, his attitude in the sport, that’s someone you want to look up to, you get to your late 30s or early 40s still doing your sport then why not.”

Peaty still has over a decade to go if he wishes to match Federer's longevity. When asked for his two cents on the matter, the ace swimmer admitted that he would give it a shot despite swimming being a "brutal sport" physically.

“That’s another 10 years or more and it’s a brutal sport especially as you get older but you find new ways don’t you," explained Peaty.

"Unfortunately, I have been playing in a time where the three guys ahead of me are quite good" - Andy Murray on Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic, and Rafel Nadal

Murray on the big 3 🎤

“Unfortunately I’ve been playing in a time where the three guys ahead of me are quite good…” 😉

@andy_murray #ATPNewport https://t.co/KwNetQS9jk

Elsewhere, Adam Peaty's countryman, Andy Murray, also spoke in glowing terms about Roger Federer and the dominance of other members of the 'Big 3' after his recent win over Sam Querrey at the Hall of Fame Tennis Championships.

Murray, a three-time Major champion, pointed out how Federer, Nadal, and Djokovic's sustained success and dominance in Slams made it difficult for him to claim more Majors.

"Unfortunately, I have been playing in a time where the three guys ahead of me are quite good," said Murray. "Between them, they have got 63 Slams, so it's not been easy to win those sort of events."