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January 2, 2008
Federer vows he has more to come
By AFP
PARIS — Roger Federer has warned would-be challengers that he intends
to stay at the top for several years to come.
Speaking to L'Equipe
newspaper after being named as it's Champion of Champions for the third year
running, the Swiss star said that at 26, he was injury-free and full of
motivation.
"It's all to do with my preparation," he said. "The way
that I train and get myself in top condition is very important.
"I
have put the priority on longevity. I've always had an eye to the future and
would like to continue playing as long as possible to play against as many
generations as possible. I am in it for the long run."
A winner of
three out of four Grand Slam titles in 2007, the Swiss player (854 points) finished well
ahead of American swimmer Michael Phelps (447 points) and French world rally champion
Sebastien Loeb in a vote by L'Equipe's journalists.
The only other
sportsman to have won three times in succession was Formula 1 champion Michael
Schumacher in 2001-2003.
Looking back over 2007, Federer said his
greatest satisfaction came from matching Bjorn Borg's record of winning
Wimbledon five times in a row by defeating Rafael Nadal in a pulsating five-sets
final.
"It was an incredible match against Nadal - in front of Borg
who was there, Connors also and McEnroe - everyone was there. It was a magical
moment for me.
"It felt like moving into another dimension and that
I was no longer just the best player in the world, but a kind of legend.
"Of course its bizarre to think of oneself as a legend, but that was
the biggest moment of the year for me."
Turning to 2008, Federer
said that winning a first French Open title was near the top of his list of
priorities, but he said equaling and possibly passing Pete Sampras' record of 14
Grand Slam titles was even higher.
He is currently on 12 Grand Slam
titles and a repeat of the last two years when on each occasion he won the
Australian, Wimbledon and US Open titles would see him move ahead of the retired
American.
Federer was speaking to L'Equipe in Dubai where he is
preparing for the defence of his Australian Open title later this month.
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