Roger Federer has revealed how his children had no idea about his enormous success in tennis until very recently.
Federer and wife Mirka have two sets of twins – 12-year-old girls Myla and Charlene, and seven-year-old boys Leo and Lenny.
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The kids are often seen supporting him from the stands with Mirka and the family entourage, cheering on their father as he battles it out on the court.
But according to Federer, the four children “didn’t know” about just how good their father is until recent days.
“For a long time, my four children had no idea what I had achieved during my tennis career,” he said in a recent interview.
“It was their friends who revealed to them that I was No.1 in the world.
“They were literally speechless. My victories have never been an important topic at home.”
Last year, Federer made the sad admission that he’s always struggled to get his children interested in tennis.
“I have struggled with my children. I have tried to promote tennis at my household with playing a lot of matches against Rafa, Novak and everybody but my kids don’t care,” he said.
“They need daddy home from the practice or from the matches.
“We tried to put a racquet in their hand and a ball in the other and see what happens.
“You see very quickly if kids like to play with the ball or go running outside. I think you see the differences very quickly.”
Roger Federer’s wife Mirka and their children, pictured here at Wimbledon in 2017.
Roger Federer’s wife Mirka and their children at Wimbledon in 2017. (Photo by Daniel Leal-Olivas – Pool/Getty Images)
Roger Federer’s family admission after missing Australian Open
The 20-time grand slam champion recently announced that he won’t be playing the Australian Open in January as he continues his recovery from another round of knee surgery.
The Swiss legend said he would be able to resume running in January and return to training on the court in March or April.
However the 40-year-old said he’d be “incredibly surprised” if he was even ready for Wimbledon in July.
