Original title: Swiss still difficult to accept Federer retirement
Xinhua News Agency, Geneva, September 18.
Xinhua News Agency reporter Shan Lei
From Federer’s announcement on the 15th that he was about to retire, the popularity of the news in Switzerland only declined slightly on the 18th. Almost all local Swiss news sites and social platforms are expressing their remorse for Federer.
How much influence does Federer have on the Swiss? A word that frequently appears in the major Swiss media is enough to describe – hero.
For international sports, losing Federer means losing a tennis superstar. But there are still Djokovic and Nadal in the world men’s tennis world; the international sports world is still paying attention to football stars from all walks of life, and the football World Cup is approaching… For the international sports world, Federer is not everything.
But for Swiss nationals, Federer’s retirement almost took away “half the sky” of Swiss sports.
For many years, the Swiss have been concerned with three main sports – football, skiing and ice hockey. Tennis has never been the favorite sport of the Swiss. Even if there has been a world number one star in women’s tennis such as Hingis, tennis was not very important in Switzerland before Federer.
Until Federer was born, all the Swiss recognized that Federer was a calling card for Switzerland to face the world. The Swiss foreign ministry also acknowledged when introducing national sports that although football, skiing and ice hockey are the top three sports, tennis is Switzerland’s most well-known sport internationally. Federer has single-handedly elevated tennis’ status in Switzerland to the top, turning a relatively niche sport into a sought-after favorite.
In the minds of many Swiss, Federer is the greatest tennis player the world has ever seen and the greatest of all Swiss sports. What Swiss fans say most on social networking sites is “thank you”, and the Swiss media also express their hearts with the words “thank you for everything you have done for us, champion”.
Federer’s presence was a surprise for Switzerland, but his departure was a disappointment. After Federer, who can inherit his mantle in the Swiss sports world and have such a great influence in the international sports world? As of now, not yet.
Although even the greatest athletes will retire one day, the Swiss still find it difficult to accept the 41-year-old Federer’s departure. They can only express their remorse in the language of gratitude.
The Swiss information website said: “Federer is not eternal, but he changed tennis forever.” For the Swiss, Federer changed not only tennis, but also the Swiss perception of sports.