The typically mild-mannered and milquetoast Roger Federer had a bone to pick Sunday after a fan approached the tennis star seeking a selfie on court after Federer’s match at the French Open.
The young fan ran onto the court and approached Federer from behind, at which point Federer offered a contemptuous half-smile and wondered where the hell security was. It appears no selfie was even taken. You can watch the encounter for yourself:
After the match. Federer was pretty livid for his standards. On Saturday, he was similarly bombarded after practice for autograph requests, leading to his frustration boiling over (via ESPN):
“I’m not happy about it, obviously not one second I’m happy about it,” Federer said. “It happened yesterday in the practice, too. And, today on center court, where you would think this is a place where nobody can come on, just wanders on and nothing happens.
“So I definitely think this is [a change] that something needs to happen quickly. But obviously [I] want this to happen immediately. Normally I only speak on behalf of myself, but in this situation I think I can speak on behalf of all the players, that that’s where you do your job, that’s where you want to feel safe. But nothing happened, so I’m relieved. But clearly it wasn’t a nice situation to be in.”
Later, speaking in French, Federer continued to complain about the lack of a security response to the fan:
“Nobody reacted in terms of safety, you know, security”
...
“It’s not just being there, standing there on the courts wearing a nice tie and suit. It’s not that funny, you know. And I hope that there is going to be a reaction from the tournament. They apologized, and I must say that I appreciated this, but I’d like to see what’s going to happen next.”
The fan was eventually detained and will not be allowed to attend any more matches for the rest of the tournament. French Tennis Federation director Gilbert Ysern apologized to Federer, and termed the incident an “error of judgment.”
The rest of us can only hope this doesn’t ruin Federer’s love of the selfie in the future.
[ESPN]
Photo via AP