Story highlights
Federer and Hingis to pair up
Playing mixed doubles in Rio Olympics
Federer has two Olympics medals
Doubles No.1 Hingis bidding for first
Switzerland has its own tennis “Dream Team” ready to serve up gold at the Rio Olympics next summer.
After months of speculation, Roger Federer has finally confirmed that he will play mixed doubles with Martina Hingis at the Summer Games.
The 17-time grand slam winner has already topped the podium at the Olympics, winning gold with Stan Wawrinka in men’s doubles in Beijing and took silver in the singles at the 2012 London Olympics, losing to Andy Murray in the final.
Hingis, ranked world number one in women’s doubles, will be bidding for her first Olympic medal.
She reportedly made the original offer to Federer to pair up competitively for the first time since playing in the 2001 Hopman Cup for Switzerland, an event they won.
“I’m very excited about that because I haven’t played with Martina I guess in 15 years,” said Federer.
“I looked up to her when I was younger, I thought she was the most unbelievable talent,” he added.
The 35-year-old Hingis, who has 20 grand slam titles, five in singles, 11 in doubles and four in mixed doubles, has enjoyed a dominant year on the WTA Tour with her Indian partner Sania Mirza.
She will pair up with teenage prodigy Belinda Bencic, who is coached by Hingis’ mother, in the women’s doubles in Rio.
Federer, 34, is also set for a busy Games, competing in the singles and likely also the men’s doubles with Wawrinka.
He ended 2015 as world number three in singles, losing in the finals of Wimbledon and the U.S. Open to Novak Djokovic.
