"We couldn't have foreseen his incredible success" - Mother Lynette on Roger Federer's record-breaking career
Roger Federer's parents Robert and Lynette Federer were recently interviewed by Blick on the eve of the Swiss maestro's 40th birthday. During the interaction, the couple answered a variety of questions, ranging from Roger Federer's personality growing up to whether they expected him to be playing at the age of 40.
Mother Lynette first reminisced about her son's early years, insisting that the Swiss maestro had a charming personality even as a child. Lynette, who coached her son when he was a child, said Roger Federer was always adamant about playing some kind of sport, be it squash, football or tennis.
"Roger was fun, active, he always had a lot of friends. With him, there was always something going on. You could quickly see that he had a great urge to move. I was like that too, by the way," Lynette said. "It doesn't matter whether it's with a skateboard, on a bike, at the ping-pong table or while playing squash with Robbie."
"It was nice to see him having fun. It could be seen that it was not an obligation. He loved it. As soon as he was able to walk he always had to have a ball with him and he was playing football as soon as possible."
When questioned about how far she thought Roger Federer would go, the 69-year-old admitted that she never believed the Swiss would forge such a successful career for himself.
"People have often said how exceptional his talent was or how well he knew how to handle the ball from an early age. But we couldn't have foreseen the incredible success he had afterward," Lynette said.
Robert Federer echoed his wife's sentiments.
"We never saw him as a future star so we didn't live with that in mind. For a long time, we just waited to see how things were going to turn out," Robert said.
"From me, Roger Federer probably received the discipline and the desire to move" - Lynette Federer
Robert and Lynette were also asked about the traits their son had inherited from them. While Robert maintained that he and his son have a striking physical resemblance, Lynette claimed that the Swiss maestro had inherited her discipline and aptitude for tennis.
"He looks a lot like me physically. I believe he clearly received certain traits from me. It's hard to say otherwise," Robert said.
"From me, he very probably received the discipline and the desire to move. Perhaps also talent with the ball," Lynette said.
At the end of the interview, Robert and Lynette were also asked whether they ever expected the Swiss to play when he was 40 years old. Lynette, on her part, admitted that she didn't expect it, but insisted that it did not come as too much of a surprise considering Roger Federer was still in relatively good shape.
"No, not really. But he certainly follows his instinct and his love for the sport. In addition, her body has coped with repetitive strain relatively well over the past 25 years," Lynette said.
Robert added that Roger Federer "still lives for tennis" before lavishing praise on his son for the effort he has made to recover from his knee injury.
"It's great that he still lives for tennis. And did you see that he undertook and all the efforts he made to rebuild himself after his injury? It is truly admirable. Roger is living his dream. We accept it and do not intervene with it," he said.