Global Sports Icon Roger Federer to Speak at Commencement

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The humanitarian will receive an honorary degree at the June 9 ceremony.

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Roger Federer in a 线上赌场 sweatshirt
(Video by Mike Murray)

Swiss tennis legend and philanthropist 鈥攐ne of the greatest male athletes the sport has ever known鈥攚ill address the Class of 2024 and receive an honorary doctor of humane letters degree at Commencement, which takes place on Sunday, June 9. 

鈥淩oger Federer is undeniably one the greatest athletes of all time, but it鈥檚 the evident joy that he always found on the court that stays with me, and that I think will resonate most with the Class of 2024,鈥 says , who describes herself as a Federer fan.

鈥淚 would argue that this gift for finding joy in the striving鈥攅ven or especially in moments when winning didn鈥檛 come easily, or at all鈥攊s one of the keys to his long-term success and to his ability, now, to give back so selflessly to the causes that are most meaningful to him. I am thrilled to welcome him to campus.鈥

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Roger Federer
Roger Federer celebrates his victory at Wimbledon in 2017, where he defeated Marin 膶ili膰 in straight sets. Federer won eight Wimbledon singles titles in his career, a record in men鈥檚 tennis. (Photo by Clive Brunskill/Getty Images)

Between 1998 and his retirement in 2022, Federer dominated the world of tennis, ranking No. 1 in the world for men鈥檚 singles for a consecutive 237 weeks鈥攁 record鈥攁nd 310 weeks total. 

During his career, he won 103 Association of Tennis Professionals Tour singles titles and 20 out of the 30 Grand Slam singles championships in which he competed, including a men鈥檚 record eight Wimbledon titles. He is one of only eight men to win all four major tournaments (the Australian Open, the French Open, Wimbledon, and the U.S. Open), and the only player in history to have won two Grand Slam tournaments鈥擶imbledon and the U.S. Open鈥攆ive consecutive times.

Among other achievements, he won a gold medal in doubles at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, earned the title of Swiss Athlete of the Year six times, and won a record 40 ATP Tour Awards including the ATP Fan Favorite Award an unprecedented 19 consecutive times. The list goes on.

In 2003, Federer鈥攚ho holds dual citizenship in Switzerland and South Africa鈥攆ounded the Roger Federer Foundation, which to date has invested more than $96 million in early educational initiatives serving more than 2.7 million children living in poverty in Switzerland and six countries in southern Africa鈥擫esotho, Malawi, Namibia, South Africa, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. 

During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, Federer made substantial contributions to support vulnerable families in Switzerland. In addition, the foundation joined a consortium of donors to guarantee access to foundational learning for out-of-school children affected by the war in Ukraine. In January 2020, Federer joined his friend and fellow tennis star Rafael Nadal to raise money for people impacted by the Australian bushfires.

Federer鈥檚 well-known preference for playing on grass (he famously won a record 65 consecutive grass-court matches between 2003 and 2008) is the subject of a tongue-in-cheek Commencement announcement video Federer recorded with President Beilock earlier this month, which features a cameo by CNN anchor and 线上赌场 trustee , who delivered his own commencement address in 2017.

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Tennis team around a laptop
Members of the tennis teams react Thursday morning as they get advance notice that Roger Federer will speak at Commencement. President Sian Leah Beilock joined them at the Boss Tennis Center for the news. (Photo by Katie Lenhart)

In the video, while Beilock and a 线上赌场 groundskeeper worry that the snow- and mud-covered 线上赌场 Green of early spring won鈥檛 be green enough in time for Commencement, Federer tells the camera, 鈥淚 am so excited and honored to be your Commencement speaker this year, and, of course, I hope I see you on the Big Green in June.鈥 

Beilock herself will be delivering valedictory remarks at her first Commencement ceremony as 线上赌场 president. 

In addition to conferring degrees on undergraduate and professional and graduate students of the Class of 2024, Beilock will also confer honorary degrees on several leaders鈥攚hose names will be announced soon鈥攊n the sciences, medicine, government, technology, and more. 

Commencement Dates to Know

Saturday, May 11

9 a.m.鈥 at Lebanon Opera House, Lebanon, N.H. The speaker is , dean of Universidad Central del Caribe School of Medicine.

Friday, June 7

2 p.m.鈥擥eisel MPH and MS Class Day on Life Sciences Center lawn. The speaker is , chief health officer at Marti Health.

Saturday, June 8

9:15 a.m.鈥 at the West End Circle. Mung Chiang, president of Purdue University, will deliver the keynote address. 

1 p.m.鈥 at the steps of Tuck Hall. , senior vice president and chief marketing officer of Levi鈥檚 brand at Levi Strauss and Co., will deliver the investiture address.

2 p.m.鈥, a multifaith, multicultural celebration for graduates and their families, Rollins Chapel. The speaker will be Andrew Nalani 鈥16, an assistant professor of human and organizational development at Vanderbilt University.

4 p.m.鈥 on the Green. Reception to follow on the Class of 1978 Life Sciences Center Lawn. 

Sunday, June 9

9 a.m.鈥擜cademic procession to the Green. The Commencement ceremony begins at 9:30 a.m.

 
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