Mirka Vavrinec was a former world No. 76 in the WTA Rankings in early 2000s, and sometimes she hits with her husband Roger Federer. How many times they play together? ‘About five times a year. Mostly during the holidays when I feel like playing tennis again’, Roger revealed in an interview with Coopzeitung during Gerry Weber Open.
‘Then Mirka has to step in. Anyways, we’re not playing for points. I’m really happy she played. She knows what it takes so that I can optimally prepare for a tournament. The understanding is much bigger than if it had nothing to do with tennis.’ Federer also stressed the importance of having Mirka next to him: ‘It helps me more on the mental level.
She immediately notices when I’m stressed, but does not hold back with criticism. Most of all, she supports me in the organisational field. Whereby Mirka is more mommy at the moment and has withdrawn from the daily business a little bit.
Which is good too.’ Then an unusual question. Did Federer ever eat Wimbledon grass like Novak Djokovic did after winning this year’s title? ‘Literally not’, admitted the world No. 2, who won eight titles, including the most recent one in 2017.
‘I love the smell. It reminds me of my football time as a junior. In the figurative sense, however, I recently ate grass in the first round of the grasshopper tournament in Stuttgart.
Roger Federer and former New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning linked up to pay tribute to hospital worker.
Roger Federer and former NFL star Eli Manning showed their class on Mother’s Day with a special message for a COVID-19 healthcare professional working in New York.
There have been over 21,000 deaths from the coronavirus disease in the city with nurses and doctors in hospitals overwhelmed by the number of cases.
Christianne Calderon, a critical care nurse practitioner at the NewYork–Presbyterian Hospital, spoke to ESPN about the struggle she has faced working at the frontline.
“It was just so fast. I couldn’t even have a moment to mourn the loss of a patient that I have just lost because now there was another coming,” she said.
“If I transferred one patient, I already anticipated someone else coming.
“I had never experienced that fast of a turnover without having to take a breather and say ‘OK, give me a minute’.”
The footage later shows Calderon as an avid fan of tennis and she compares her mentality in the treatment room to that of an athlete.
“I don’t want to lose,” she declared. “And in the patient setting during this pandemic, winning is discharging the patient out of the ICU.
“That is winning. Or taking the tube out of the ventilator. That’s winning. And because I always want to win, I celebrate every little minute change, that are positive changes, I call it a win.”
As Calderon spoke with ESPN broadcaster Tom Rinaldi, Federer joined the link to her complete surprise.
Federer said: “People think, we the athletes, are superheroes. But we think the same about somebody like you Christianne.
“You are the hero because you actually do save lives. You actually do make that difference.”
Calderon thanked Federer for his message and praised his humility before she was then greeted by Manning, who also took the time to hail her efforts on Mother’s Day.
He said: “I’d like to be amongst the first to wish you a Happy Mother’s Day.
“And a sincere thank you for being on the frontline, for your work, your commitment, your selflessness and I think those describe what a hero is.”
