For the man who won 13 Grand Slam singles titles, Roger Federer, winning an Olympic gold medal in Beijing helped him to forget a difficult first part of the year. On 16 August 2008, the Swiss tennis player added an Olympic gold medal to his collection by winning the men's doubles with Stanislas Wawrinka. “It's a magical moment. Something incredible in my career," said Federer. “It has definitively inspired me. It helped me to stay positive and be motivated for the US Open and not maybe be too disappointed.” Which turned out to be exactly right as, a few weeks later, Federer won his fifth consecutive US Open title.
A dream-come-true-moment
In 1992, at the age of 11, Federer watched Marc Rosset win a tennis gold medal at the Barcelona Games. This victory perhaps brought out this desire to take part in the Olympic tournament, which brought together the best players of the time. At his first Games, in Sydney in 2000, he missed the Olympic podium by one step, but met his girlfriend of eight years. Four years later, in Athens, he was the flag-bearer of the Swiss delegation, but exited the tournament prematurely. In 2008 in Beijing, he carried the Swiss flag for the second time while celebrating his 27th birthday. “To carry the flag is one of the achievements you only dream about. It was one of the great moments in my career,” said the man considered as the greatest player of all time, before adding, “The Olympic Games is like Wimbledon to me. It’s really a dream come true to be part of it, walking into the stadium at the Opening Ceremony”.
One of the “Heroes” campaign
Roger Federer is among the stars of the IOC campaign entitled “Heroes”, along with other legendary Olympic athletes including Yao Ming, Laure Manaudou, Liu Xiang, Yelena Isinbayeva, Kenenisa Bekele, Vanessa Ferrari and Carolina Kluft. All these athletes are superheroes seeking to achieve the seemingly impossible. “Heroes” leverages the determination and performance of Olympic athletes to communicate the key Olympic values. “Heroes” forms part of the IOC’s promotional campaign entitled “The Best of Us” - a simple, powerful idea that transcends cultures and borders, motivating young people around the world to participate in sport by proving that sport can bring out the best in them. The campaign was launched in 2007 and continues to run after the Beijing Games.
