Dec 26, 2008 from USA Today:
Olympic gold medalists claimed the top three spots in the male and female categories in the final vote tally for the United States Sports Academy's Athlete of the Year.

Swimmer Michael Phelps, who won a record eight gold medals in the 2008 Summer Games in Beijing, won the Male Athlete of the Year Award. Russian native Nastia Liukin, who now lives in Parker, Texas, was named the Female Athlete of the Year after capturing the gymnastics all-around gold medal in Beijing, as well as three silvers and a bronze.

Phelps was followed by Swiss tennis star Roger Federer, who won gold in men's doubles in Beijing as well as the U.S. Open singles championship. Third place went to Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt, who won three golds with world-record-breaking performances in the 100-, 200- and 4x100-meter relay.

Dec 24, 2008 from Roger Federer Official Site:
Dear Fans

After a wonderful and very relaxing seaside holiday I am now in the final stage of preparation for the new season which, as you know, will be beginning very soon. Never before have I started a tennis-year as early as the one ahead: I will be back in action on January 1st. I am very much looking forward to the tournament in Abu Dhabi, which is taking place for the first time, as well as the entire season of 2009! There is such a large number of challenges lying ahead - facing them, working hard and giving my best to succeed is precisely why I love my job so much.

Looking back at the past 365 days a lot of unforgettable experiences come to mind. But there are, of course, also the tough moments I had to go through. I faced an unexpectedly difficult training period and exhausting start of the season due to illness precisely 12 months ago. I spent a great deal of the year battling with the lack of practice and hours of training that I faced at the time.

So having played another three Grand Slam finals and having brought home the US Open trophy as well as reaching Olympic heights together with Stan Wawrinka makes me just the more proud. I was honoured to receive the Laureus title as Athlete of the Year again and also lift the trophy at my home-tournament in Basel once more. These are some of the truly wonderful, emotional moments I had the privilege to experience. And it was special to be able to share them together with Stan in Beijing.

Something I will always want to stress is the fact that all these experiences would not have been the same if I hadn't been able to share them with all of you. You gave me your full support during the entire season and showed me your enthusiasm for this wonderful sport. Your thoughtful gifts, words and actions are always a fabulous reward. I would like to thank you for that with all my heart. Let's keep up the great work and head into a successful 2009 together!

I'd like to wish all of you and your families a Merry Christmas, a wonderful end of this year and all the best for the one lying ahead.

Dec 18, 2008 from AFP:
The United States Tennis Association has chosen Birmingham, Alabama as the host city for the 2009 first round match between USA and Switzerland. The matches will played in the 17,000-seat indoor Convention Complex Arena from March 6-8.

Dec 15, 2008 from Eurosport:
Daniel F asked: If you could have dinner with three sporting legends - past or present - who would you choose and why?

Mark Selby (world no.4 snooker player): I'd go for Tiger Woods, Roger Federer and Muhammad Ali because they are all true greats in their respective sports.

Dec 11, 2008 from The National:
ABU DHABI - The schedule for the inaugural Capitala World Tennis Championship has been announced and it has thrown up some tantalising clashes.

Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer, Andy Murray, Nikolay Davydenko, Andy Roddick and James Blake make up the line-up for tournament which runs from Jan 1-3 at the Abu Dhabi International Tennis Complex at Zayed Sports City.

The action on New Year’s Day will see Andy Roddick take on Nikolay Davydenko in the opening match, which will start at 3pm. That will be followed straight afterwards by Andy Murray as he takes on James Blake.

The Jan 2 itinerary will comprise the semi-finals. Roger Federer will compete against the victor of the Murray and Blake meeting in a clash that will begin at 3pm. In the second semi-final, Rafael Nadal will faces the winner of the clash between Roddick and Davydenko.

The winning semi-finalists will then compete on Jan 3 in the final, with the start time for that game being 5pm. Tickets for all three days of the event are on sale at www.boxofficeme.com and are proving popular, much to the delight of tournament organisers.

“We are expecting a series of exhilarating matches,” said Peter Wilding, deputy chief executive of Capitala. “Every seat at the ATP standard Abu Dhabi International Tennis Complex offers fantastic views so it’s not surprising that tickets are selling fast.

Dec 9, 2008 from Sydney Morning Herald:
Money might still the desire of some of the current players to do what it takes to remain on top, he cautioned. One of Ken Rosewall's favourites, Roger Federer, is shooting for a 14th grand slam at the Australian Open to equal Pete Sampras's record.

"I've always enjoyed Roger's game, having seen him as a young player when he first visited here and played in Sydney, to witness his improvement and to see quite a lot of his victories,'' Rosewall said.

"He's lifted the level of play and reallly brought on a lot of other great men players trying to emulate his form.''

Yet the Swiss star has every chance of breaking Sampras's mark, his future would depend on his internal drive.

Dec 7, 2008 from Roger Federer Official Site:
A few months after their title at the Olympic doubles tennis competition, Roger and Stanislas Wawrinka were able to celebrate another victory. They were elected Swiss Team of the Year with over 30% of the overall votes at the "Credit Suisse Sports Awards" gala yesterday.

Unfortunately Roger was not able to make the hattrick as Athlete of the Year as Fabian Cancellara won the title. Roger had invited Fabian to his welcome home event in Basel on September 9 after his victories in Beijing and New York - the two athletes are good friends. Together with Stan Wawrinka, all three Swiss winners of a gold medal at the 2008 Olympics attended the event.

from Times of India:
Q: How was your Beijing experience? Did you expect to win an Olympic gold medal?

Stanislas Wawrinka: I concentrated on my game. I teamed up with Roger Federer in the men’s doubles. We defeated the Bryan Brothers in the semi-finals. We then went on to defeat Simon Aspelin and Thomas Johansson (Sweden) in the finals. The moment we defeated the Bryan brothers, I was sure that I would win the match and a gold medal.

Q: How was it to partner a living legend like Roger Federer?

Dec 5, 2008 from AP:
ZURICH - The 300 richest Swiss residents -- half of whom are foreigners -- together lost 70 billion francs ($58.5 billion) last year. Their combined wealth is now 459 billion francs ($383.4 billion).

For the seventh year in a row, business magazine Bilanz listed Ikea founder Ingvar Kamprad as the richest person in Switzerland, with an estimated wealth of 35-36 billion francs ($29.2-30.1 billion).

The Hoffmann and Oeri families ranked second, based on a combined wealth of 16-17 billion francs ($13.4-14.2 billion) from their stake in drug maker Roche Holding. That's 2 billion francs ($1.7 billion) less than in 2007.

The Brenninkmeijer family, founders of textile company C&A, came third with 12-13 billion francs ($10-10.9 billion).

Among the worst-hit were Russian tycoon Viktor Vekselberg, who lost 3 billion francs ($2.5 billion), and the Geneva-based Latsis family, whose banking interests shrank by about 4 billion francs ($3.3 billion).

Dec 4, 2008 from Sky Sports:
Boris Becker is predicting a thrilling 2009 with the world's top four men in dominant form.

Becker expects Roger Federer to reclaim the Wimbledon crown, he is also forecasting stronger challenges than ever before from Andy Murray and Novak Djokovic.

Becker said: "I don't think the game will be dominated just by Nadal or Federer. I think with Murray and Djokovic, the four of them will dominate next year.

"But I believe Federer has a good chance of coming back as number one because Nadal plays a very physical game and has to watch his body a little bit now. He cancelled the Masters in Shanghai and the Davis Cup because of injury, so he needs to be back in his best shape.

"Federer's game is bit lighter but he has to watch over his shoulder as Andy had a fantastic second half of the year. Tennis is in good shape at the moment.

Dec 2, 2008 from Roger Federer Official Site:
Dear Fans

It is my pleasure to inform you that my schedule for 2009 has been finalised and I am glad to share it with you. You can find it under 'schedule' or just follow the link below. I am really pleased with the season the way we have planned it and I am looking forward to an exciting year!

I am still enjoying a few more days on holiday. It is such a treat to just enjoy the sun and the sea together with Mirka. After that we'll start the preparations for 2009 with a training camp in Dubai. That is always very intense, but it's a vital part to a successful start of the new year - which begins very soon!

Kind regards
Roger

from Tennis Australia:
It may still be more than a month away, but the thoughts of Roger Federer have already turned to one of his happiest tennis hunting grounds, Rod Laver Arena.

“The Australian Open 2009 takes on a major significance for me, even more so after my illness last year,” Federer said.

“I am very keen to continue my Grand Slam form from the US Open and add another ‘Happy Slam’ to my collection,” he said.

“There is no better way to start the year than with a win in the men’s final on Rod Laver Arena. I am very comfortable there and have had some of my best tennis memories in that building.”

Indeed, one of the most memorable moments in Australian Open history was the tearful presentation ceremony, when the then world No.1 became emotional as he was presented with the Norman Brookes Trophy by his tennis idol, the legendary Rod Laver.

Laver will again be in Australia in 2009 to celebrate the 40th anniversary of his 1969 Grand Slam effort in which he won all four Slams: the French, Wimbledon, US and Australian Open.

“We know Roger Federer is a supreme athlete with great respect for the game and its tradition. He has the dual motivation of wanting to regain the world No.1 ranking and also create some history of his own.” Australian Open Tournament Director Craig Tiley said.

“His preparation for our event is normally immaculate, so expect nothing less than a finely-tuned, incredibly-motivated world-class tennis player when he arrives in Melbourne in January.”

Whether Laver and Federer will again be on the podium on 1 February remains to be seen. For now, the Swiss champion’s focus is on getting into top condition for the new season.

from PA:
Pete Sampras has backed Roger Federer to break his record number of grand slam wins in the "next couple of years" and hopes to be there when it happens.

Sampras, who is in London this week playing at the Tour of Champions' BlackRock Masters, has tipped him to come back stronger in 2009.

"There's a lot left in him," the American said of Federer.

"I think he'd like to get back to number one and he's looking forward to breaking my record soon.

"He can win as many Wimbledons as he wants - he's got the game.

"Roger's probably going to break it over the next couple of years. I've been pretty accepting that he'll break it.

"He's a credit to the game, he's a friend and there's nothing I can do about it apart from sit back and watch him do it and respect it."

Asked if he will be present, Sampras replied: "I'd like to out of respect to him and his record. And if it's Wimbledon there's a good chance I'll be there."

Five years Federer's junior and already with five grand slam titles, Rafael Nadal perhaps has the better chance of setting a new record by the time he retires.

But Sampras has questioned how well the Spaniard's body can cope with the pressures of top-level tennis.

"It will be interesting to see what happens with Nadal next year," said the 37-year-old.

"The amount of work he has to do to stay on top and stay healthy - I think that's where Roger has a bit of an advantage because it takes a lot less energy for Roger to stay on top than Nadal.

"Rafa's strung so tight and the guy is an absolute animal. He puts so much effort into each point that eventually something will break. There's a certain grind that he goes through, unlike Roger who is a lot more fluid and wins matches a lot easier.

from Independent:
Federer has become a good friend and Sampras expects him to win the two titles he needs to break the American's record number of Grand Slam crowns. "I'd love the record to stand for ever, but if it is going to be broken then someone like Roger deserves it," Sampras said. "He's a credit to the game.

"We text each other quite a bit. He tells me how he's doing and asks what I'm up to. We had a week together in Asia and we clicked. Our personalities are similar. He's pretty sarcastic and pretty dry. We had a great time."

from Gulf News:
Thierry Henry's football skills, it seems, have now found a new admirer in tennis ace Roger Federer.

Henry says they both keep in touch quite often, after having met sometime back as a part of the 'Gillette Fusion Champions.' Tiger Woods completes an illustrious trio, while Gillette has recently added a fourth brand ambassador - Saudi Arabian footballer Yassir Al Qah'tani.

Dec 1, 2008 from Forbes:
Kobe Bryant leads a quick succession of athletes--Cleveland Cavaliers point forward LeBron James and tennis champs Roger Federer and Maria Sharapova. In fact, athletes take nearly half the top 10 best-paid celebs under 30--indicative of the power of endorsement deals and testament to the fact that they reach their peak much faster than actors, who gain recognition and fatter paychecks over time.