Tennis immortals Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal have surprised the fans with a moving new ad campaign for a luxury brand as they discussed their inspirations and legacies.
The duo joined forces for French luxury fashion house Louis Vuitton’s Core Values campaign with a footage shot in snowy conditions in Italy’s Dolomites mountain range.
In the video, titled “There are Journeys that turn into Legends”, the pair scale the summit as they “embark on a journey of ambition, devotion, and discovery”.
The video starts with the two legends discussing their accomplishments in tennis with Federer stating becoming World #1 and expressing contentment for his glittering career overall. Nadal echoed his great rival’s comments but rated his 14 French Open titles as his biggest achievement.
In a Q/A session the players revealed their secrets to the success and discussed their younger selves and their inspirations in the sports.
But the highlight of the interview came when they were asked: “Do you remember the first time you met each other?”
Nadal replied: “I do remember. Probably not him… It was when you won your first Wimbledon. It was 2003”
Federer: “Was I nice to you?”
Nadal: “You were a little bit arrogant.”
The response drew a laughter from the pair before the 22-time Grand Slam champion added: “No, you were super nice. I was just arriving on the tour, I was a junior so I was super shy to talk to you, but you were very nice.”
Federer then recalled Nadal’s first match at the Monte Carlo Masters in 2003.
“He was super young and so good and we were all thinking ‘Urg, another Spaniard, another clay-courter, dirt baller, future top 10er, maybe probably even more and he achieved everything,” he said.
“For me, the really special moment was in 2004 when I was world No 1 and I played you in Miami and he actually beat me, which was maybe a surprise to some … that was cool to see the young players come up, the Murrays, the Djokovices. That first match will always be very meaningful even though I lost it.
“It’s been a great rivalry like with so many other players, but Rafa of course you know with his playing style and his sort of attitude on court at a young, young age was not like everybody else.
“You could feel that there was something special coming.
“I don’t miss those days, but I miss them because it was obviously a big moment when we played each other.”
When asked how would they like to be remembered?
Nadal answered: “We have been on the tour for over 20 years and we met a lot of new people.
“At the end, what really will make me feel really proud and happy when I leave this world, is the tournament directors, the people who work on the tournaments, staff, ATP, talks good about who I was on the tour or who I am as a person more than a tennis player.”
“As a tennis player, at the end we have the titles, we have the achievements, and that’s how it is. I achieved more than what I ever dreamed about. So I mean, for me, at the end, the legacy in terms of human being, even for me, after achieving all the things that we achieved, I think for me is the most important thing without a doubt.”.
Federer shared similar thoughts.
“I hope I’m remembered not only as a tennis player, but also as the person behind what I gave to the game and what I represented to the game, and it was less about all my Wimbledon victories or whatever it was, that meant a lot to me,” he said.
“So I think if I can be remembered more also as the personality other than just a player, that’d be great. And if I was a good role model for the kids, I think that would make me happy too,” said the Swiss.