Roger Federer’s Olympic Gold Quest Could Be Hindered as 2021 Tokyo Olympics Under Threat

Roger Federer will turn 40 this year and is nearing the end of his career. But one title has eluded his illustrious trophy cabinet, that being an Olympic singles Gold Medal. 2020 was an Olympic year, but because of the coronavirus pandemic, it was postponed to 2021. But with the re-emergence of the coronavirus, the Tokyo Olympics is under the threat of being canceled.

Japan’s capital, Tokyo, has witnessed a sharp surge in coronavirus cases. The daily cases are well beyond a thousand, and thus the Prime Minister of Japan has declared a state of emergency in Tokyo and the surrounding regions. This has put the 2021 Tokyo Olympics in jeopardy.

The International Olympic Committee has said that another postponement is not financially possible and thus cancelation could be the only option.

Given the situation around the world coupled with the state of emergency in Tokyo, the Japanese public is against the Olympics.

“The Japanese public are already more and more inclined to oppose the hosting of the Olympics this summer, and the state of emergency reinforces the perception that it is a lost cause,” Koichi Nakano, a politics professor in Tokyo.

Roger Federer has played in four Olympic Games and is yet to win a singles gold medal

Federer has a long history with the Olympics. He made his Olympics debut in 2000 and has been the flag bearer for his country multiple times. But it has been a rather dry spell for the Swiss Master. He has participated in four Olympic Games but has reached the finals just once, in 2012. He lost that final to Andy Murray.

The Olympic singles Gold with the four Grand Slam titles makes up the Golden Slam. Among men, only Andre Agassi and Rafael Nadal have achieved this feat. Federer hasn’t and thus it is the only major title eluding him.

Federer does have an Olympic Gold Medal in doubles, which he achieved with Stan Wawrinka at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Tokyo Olympics will likely be his final chance to win a singles Gold Medal, and if the Olympics doesn’t begin on July 23, 2021, then Federer might just end his career without it.

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