Roger Federer Graces One of Six Covers for TIME's 100 Most Influential People Issue
Roger Federer graces of six TIME covers this week for the magazine's annual 100 Most Influential People issue.
Federer, 36, has won three of the last five tennis Slams, including the Australian Open and Wimbledon in 2017 and the Australian Open again in 2018. Federer holds a record 20 Grand Slam titles and is considered by many to be the best men's tennis player of all time.
His late-career resurgence reached its peak when he became the oldest player to reach world No. 1 in February, more than five years after he last topped the rankings.
Federer's introduction was written by Bill Gates, who extolled Federer's accomplishments both on and off the court. Federer and his wife, Mirka, established the Roger Federer foundation in 2003 with a mission of providing disadvantaged children with access to education and sports. Since the foundation's inception, Federer has donated more than $36 million to helping children in six African countries as well as his native Switzerland.
In March, Federer teamed up with Gates to play doubles against Jack Sock and Savannah Guthrie in the second iteration of the "Match for Africa," an exhibition match that benefits Federer's foundation.
"Roger knows that effective philanthropy, like great tennis, requires discipline and time," Gates wrote. "It will be a sad day for all of us fans when he hangs up his racket—but we can take comfort in knowing that he’s committed to making the world a more equitable place."
Six other athletes made the list: Kevin Durant of the Golden State Warriors, J.J. Watt of the Houston Texans, Olympic figure skater Adam Rippon, Olympic snowboarder Chloe Kim, cricket player Virat Kohli and gymnast Rachael Denhollander.
