The Olympic Games are just a few days away. The spectacle can be witnessed only once in four years. People remain anxious to witness the performance of some of the greatest athletes in the world.
A number of athletes participate in the sporting extravaganza hoping to make history. Some athletes find pride even at the chance to represent their nation at the grand stage.
Roger Federer, one of the greatest ever people to set foot on a tennis court, will not be participating in any tournament, including the Rio Olympics, for the rest of the year due to injury.
One could probably conjecture that this was his last chance atwinning the gold in Men’s Singles event, leaving the gold medalthe missing accolade in his trophy-laden career. Here is a flashback at his Olympics journey so far.
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Sydney Olympics, 2000
The Sydney Olympics in 2000 was the first appearance for Federer at the Olympic level.
He was only twenty at the time. Despite not making much noise in any of the Grand Slams till that part of the year, he had a good run in the tournament. The Swiss reached the semi-finals at the tournament, losing in the end to Tommy Haas of Germany.
He then had a shot at the bronze medal which he ultimately lost to the Frenchman, Arnaud Di Pasquale, and was visibly disappointed by his performance in that match. “Considering how the match was going, I should never have lost,” Federer said, hardly able to hold back the tears. “I really wanted to be standing on the podium. Now I have nothing to take home except my pride.”
His fourth round appearance in the French Open that year was his best performance in the Grand Slams throughout the year. He ended the year ranked 29th, breaking into the top 30.
The tournament proved to be fruitful for him in another aspect, though!
He met his future wife Mirka Vavrinec in the Olympic village – and the pair began dating after the tournament.
Today, they are married and parents of two pairs of twins, but it all started at the Sydney Olympics for them.
Athens Olympics, 2004
This tournament was certainly a huge disappointment for Federer and his fans.
Having won the Australian Open and the Wimbledon that year, he participated in the tournament as the number one seed.
Therefore, he was expected to go all the distance in the tournament. No one expected him to crash out in early stages of the tournament, but Federer suffered a surprising, disheartening and embarrassing loss in the second round.
Federer would lose to Czech Tomas Berdych, who was ranked 74th at the time, in a three-set loss.
He took the first set 6-4, but lost the next two sets 5-7, 5-7, and eventually the match. In fact, he had a shaky start to the tournament when his first round match against the Russian Nikolay Davydenko stretched to three sets.
He also said that he gave his 100% but simply that day did not belong to him. After his loss, he later admitted that he never felt comfortable with the conditions in Athens.
Federer took positives from the tournament and went on to win the next Grand Slam of the year, the U.S Open. He finished the year with three Grand Slam titles and ranked number one.
He became the first player since Sweden’s Mats Wilander in 1988 to win three of the four major tournaments in a calendar year.
Beijing Olympics, 2008
2008 did not begin well for the Swiss maestro. He relinquished his Australian Open title when the defending champion lost to Novak Djokovic in the semi-finals. He also lost to Rafael Nadal in the French Open that year.
Come Wimbledon, the tournament whose mention would bring a twinkle in his eye – and he reached the finals!
The final match made its entry into the history books and he became a part of the history. The epic final played over five hours, became the longest final in the history of the Wimbledon and one of the best tennis matches of all time.
He and Nadal played a nerve-wrecking match, in which Nadal avenged his loss from the hands of Federer in a similar match a year ago.
After his disappointing runs in the majors till that time of the year, the Olympics undoubtedly had a special significance for Federer that year. He had a point to prove.
But the disappointment continued as he lost to James Blake in the quarter-finals. He was beaten in straight sets by the American former No. 4, with Federer not eligible to contest even for the bronze medal.
It was not a total washout for the Swiss, though, as he won Olympic doubles gold with compatriot Stan Wawrinka.
Later that year, he lost the number one ranking to Nadal, who had a fantastic 2008, winning the French Open, Wimbledon and the Olympic Gold medal that year.
There was some respite for Federer, however, when he won the U.S Open. He ended the year as ranked world number two, missing out on top position for the first time since securing the top rank.
London Olympics, 2012
Federer participated in Beijing Olympics coming off from a seventh triumph at Wimbledon. At the Championships, he had equaled Pete Sampras record of seven Wimbledon titles. This was his 17th major title overall. He then defeated local boy Andy Murray in the finals.
He had regained his number one ranking, and must have entered the tournament brimming with confidence.
The tournament was to be played at the same venue where he had his most recent taste of glory. This could not have got better for him.
He must also have been motivated by the fact that a medal in the men’s singles event still eluded him. Going by his recent developments and form, he must have aimed at the ultimate prize – the gold medal.
The Swiss easily made it to the semi-finals of the tournament, where he had the tall Argentine, Juan Martin Del Potro, waiting for him.
The match turned out to be an eventful one and it was definitely the match of the tournament. Del Potro pushed Federer to the limit. Del Potro took the first set and Federer clinched the second set in the tie break to break even into the match.
Then commenced the gripping third set, as the match swung from one end of the court to the other.
After a grueling battle in the third set, which lasted for 2 hours and 43 minutes, Federer emerged victorious, taking the set by the score of 19-17. The two had made history. The match lasted for 4 hours and 26 minutes; this still remains the longest match in the Olympics history. The scoreline read 3-6, 7-6, 19-17 in favour of Federer.
One step away from realizing his goal of capturing the Olympics gold, Federer was blocked only by Andy Murray, the man he had only recently defeated in the Wimbledon finals.
The Scot was more than ready to make up for his loss at the Wimbledon at the hands of Federer – and won the match quite convincingly with a 6-2, 6-1, 6-4 scoreline. Federer had to be content with the silver medal, his first ever medal in the men’s singles event at the Olympics.
Later in that year, he lost the U.S Open final to Novak Djokovic. The only major that Federer won during that year was Wimbledon.
He will turn thirty five this August. One can only speculate how long he would play. By the next Olympics, he would be around thirty nine. Arguably he is one of the greatest players of all time. Ever after amassing seventeen majors, all time highest in men’s Singles, the absence of a gold medal could be the only shortcoming of an illustrious career.
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