The former head of the Swiss tennis federation claims Roger Federer was advised not to start a relationship with wife Mirka.
Roger and Mirka Federer (nee Vavrinec) met at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney when they were both playing tennis for Switzerland.
They soon started a relationship and are now married with four children.
But according to Sven Groeneveld, things could have gone very differently.
“He asked everyone if he should go with her,” Groeneveld recently revealed in an interview with “Kasi Live” on Instagram.
“Everyone advised him against.
“And that Federer did it was the best decision of his life.”
Mirka was a top-100 player before retiring in 2002 due to persistent injuries.
After they married in 2009 Mirka became Federer’s manager, however she has since relinquished that role to focus on raising their two sets of twins – Myla and Charlene, 10, and Leo and Lenny, 6.
Mirka and the kids follow Federer all over the world to watch him play, constantly spotted courtside during his matches.
Fans have been swooning over the golden couple for years, which makes Groeneveld’s tale all the more special.
How Roger and Mirka’s love blossomed in Sydney
Last year Federer lifted the lid on his courtship of Mirka in Sydney and opened up about their first kiss.
“We were both playing for Switzerland in tennis and we spent two weeks together in those dorms,” he told CNN.
“We were together with the wrestlers and all the other cool athletes. We were very lucky, we had the most incredible time.
“I guess over the two weeks, we built up some chemistry and didn’t know if this was going to take us anywhere or if this was just a moment in time.
“It was more than just a kiss. It was something that led to something extraordinary for us and we’re very happy to still be together.”
However Federer, who was 18 at the time, said he needed some persuasion from one of the wrestlers to go in for the kiss.
“One of my friends, the wrestlers, said, ‘Hey, go kiss her now,’” Federer recalled.
“And I’m like, ‘No, I don’t know, maybe, should I?’
“He goes, ‘Yes, it’s the moment.’ So anyway, I did.”
Federer even revealed the fib he told Mirka – who is three years his elder.
“I tried to tell her I was almost 18-and-a-half because she told me I was so young,” he said.
“I tried to sneak in a quarter year.”
