Roger Federer

Roger Federer (born August 8, 1981) is a Swiss tennis professional, ranked World No. 1 since February 2, 2004 for a record 205 consecutive weeks.He is widely regarded as the best player of his generation and among the elite group of all-time great male tennis players.In 2007, he was named Laureus World Sportsman of the Year for a record third consecutive time.

Federer has won 12 Grand Slam singles titles (three Australian Open, five Wimbledon, four US Open), 4 Tennis Masters Cup titles, and 14 ATP Masters Series titles. He has made and surpassed numerous records over the years, including winning three Grand Slam singles titles in a calendar year three times (in 2004, 2006, and 2007).

Roger Federer was born in Basel, Switzerland,to Swiss-German Robert Federer and South African Lynette Federer. He grew up in suburban Münchenstein, 10 minutes from Basel and borders France and Germany. As a boy, Federer was very emotional and admits to being kicked off practice courts occasionally. Federer was also a talented soccer player. He had considered becoming a professional soccer player but instead decided to choose tennis. He continues to support FC Basel, his hometown club and is a fan of Italian club AS Roma.When he was younger, he liked to watch Marcelo Ríos in action.Federer especially liked Stefan Edberg and Boris Becker and has cited them as idols.

Federer currently resides in Oberwil, Switzerland and is dating former WTA player and Slovakia-born Miroslava Vavrinec (Mirka), who retired from tennis in 2002 after a foot injury. The two met at the 2000 Sydney Olympics. Federer launched a fragrance called RF Cosmetics in October 2003.He considers Swiss German as his first language, but also speaks German, French and English fluently and conducts press conferences in all three. His favorite vacation spots are the Maldives, Dubai, and the Swiss mountains.He is also a good friend of golf superstar Tiger Woods. Federer is Roman Catholic, and met Pope Benedict XVI while playing the Rome Masters in 2006.

Roger Federer is highly involved in various charities. He established Roger Federer Foundation in 2003 to help disadvantaged people and to promote sports to young people. He is appointed as a Goodwill Ambassador of UNICEF from 2006. Since then, he has visited Tamil Nadu, one of the most tsunami-affected areas in India, and South Africa. He has also appeared in UNICEF public messages to raise the public awareness of AIDS.