One or two years ago, I didn't know who I was on court and I used to swear a lot. But now I've learned how to cope and can therefore win 10 matches in a row. I want to be remembered as a good player rather than an idiot on court.
Interpretation
Federer reflects on his personal growth and desire for a positive legacy in sports.
In this quote, Roger Federer shares his journey of self-discovery and improvement on the tennis court. He acknowledges that he struggled with his identity and emotional control in the past, resorting to swearing and negative behavior. However, through learning and coping strategies, he has transformed his mindset and performance, emphasizing his goal of being remembered as a respected player rather than one with a poor attitude. This highlights the importance of personal growth and resilience in achieving success.
In practice
In a motivational speech about personal development, one could use this quote to inspire athletes.
Winning or losing, it's always something special and something you'll remember, even more so when the match was as dramatic as it was today. It's even more memorable when I see my kids there with my wife and everything. That's what touched me the most, to be quite honest. The disappointment of the match itself went pretty quickly.
I was aware of how incredible the match was. Unfortunately there had to be a winner. From my point of view many left feeling sorry for me instead of being happy for Rafa. Which hurts.
I never waited 27 years, because 27 years ago I was just born. My parents never told me, 'If you don't win Roland Garros we take you to the orphanage.
Seriously. I'm not playing to prove anything to journalists. I'm playing for myself, for my fans,to make people happy.
I hope so. God, I've practiced so much that I you don't want to be worse five years later. I feel I have a great game today. I know how hard it is to pull off those great shots, and I know how easy it is to miss, so I'm more aware of these things. But I'm so happy I'm at the age I am right now because I had such a great run and I know there's still more possible.
When I think of the Olympics I only think of good things. I think of what a great event it is and what it has done for me and my career, and changed my personal life, too.
I was a very good cook, and I knew I could build a business.
The cherished dream of every chessplayer is to play a match with the World Champion. But here is the paradox: the closer you come to the realization of this goal, the less you think about it.
Adequacy is the enemy of excellence.
I may not hit 50, 40 or 30 home runs, but I can do the little things like moving runners over that don't show up in the box score.
My history has been to grow the roots as deeply as you can before going on to the next thing. That's why it took 10 years to go from Union Square Cafe to Gramercy Tavern, and another 10 years to go from Blue Smoke's first location to its second, and five to go from Shake Shack 1 to Shake Shack 2.
I was lucky - I found what I loved to do early in life. Woz and I started Apple in my parents' garage when I was 20. We worked hard, and in 10 years, Apple had grown from just the two of us in a garage into a $2 billion company with over 4000 employees.
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