Roger Federer and a memorable visit to Argentina, where Boca had a lot to do. Photo: AFP / Alejandro PAGNI
Through a letter on his social media, Roger Federer announced his retirement from professional tennis. The Swiss closes a career full of successes, in which he has accumulated titles, but also many anecdotes. One of these, for example, happened almost ten years ago, when the then number 2 in the world visited Argentina and stepped on one of the most emblematic stadiums of the continent.
It was December 2012, when in the context of his South American tour, Federer set foot on Argentine soil to play two exhibition games against Juan Martín Del Potro. The truth is that before Roger played his last match against ‘the Tower of Tandil’, he allowed himself the pleasure of enjoying the country, and was able to make one of his dreams come true. Together with “Delpo”, Federer visited La Bombonera.
That afternoon Roger was declared the Buenos Aires Guest of Honor by Mauricio Macri, who was the head of the Buenos Aires government at the time, and later embarked on a trip to the La Boca neighborhood along with the political leader. In the historic stadium there were several characters, such as Gabriel Batistuta, Sebastián Battaglia and Adolfo Cambiasso, among many others.
The one who joined the meeting, and in fact served as a tour guide, was Daniel Angelici, then president of Boca. The tennis player had expressed a desire to visit the ‘Xeneize’ stadium from the moment he stepped off the plane, and it was finally given to him. And not only was he able to walk the field, but also, Federer had the luxury of participating in soccer-tennis on the Bombonera lawn.
Roger and Del Potro form a couple, while Gabriel Omar Batistuta and polo player Adolfo Cambiaso play on the other side. After the match, Angelici distributed the Boca shirts, and the Swiss posed with the ‘blue and gold’ for the few cameramen who were lucky enough to accompany. That afternoon the Basel citizen not only wanted to visit La Bombonera, but also, He also got some other souvenirs.
Hours later, Federer will play the second of the exhibition matches against Del Potro at the Tigre, to round off his trip to Argentina. And although Roger’s visit to the La Boca neighborhood had all the condiments, this one lacked an advantage: due to calendar problems, the Swiss could not watch a Boca game from the pits.
Today Roger is starting to move away from the professional circuit and the idea of the Swiss will surely have to do with enjoying his retirement to the fullest. Federer hasn’t seen a match at the Bombonera yet. Now that you have more time, you may have the opportunity again. What if he called it Riquelme?
Source: Clarin
