Thursday July 8, 2004

A bust for local hero Federer

GSTAAD: After etching his name into the Wimbledon record books with a second straight title, Roger Federer watched Wednesday as a sculptor worked to immortalise his image on a bust commissioned by organisers at the Swiss Open.

Despite a hectic post-Wimbledon schedule, Switzerland's runaway world number one is fulfilling the third year of an agreement to compete in his home event.

"I made an deal and I'm happy to stick with it," said Federer, the best-known of any Swiss sportsman. "But it may be tough in the future, if I keep doing well at Wimbledon."

Federer owes a loyalty to the tournament, which gave him his first wild card entry as a youngster in 1998.

As Federer met with Swiss press in a spa-hotel in this VIP village, a sculptor worked to define the facial details of Federer on what will become a life-sized bust of the player.

The genuine article - also wearing his trademark pony-tail, happily poised for photos with his image - constructed of a different kind of clay than the type he's normally used to.

"It's just great being back in Switzerland and playing in front of the Swiss people," said Federer, 47-4 so far in 2004. "I'm not putting any pressure on myself, but I'd love to go further than last year."

Federer plays for the quarter-finals Thursday against 2.08-metre Croatian giant Ivo Karlovic.

The Swiss said he feels relief after defending the first of his three Grand Slam crowns with a four-set defeat of Andy Roddick on the grass. "I've defended most of my big points. But (US Open champion) Roddick is entering his big season.

"It gets a little bit easier for me after I won at Wimbledon."

Federer last year lost the Gstaad final on the fast clay to Jiri Novak.

The fourth-seeded Czech, spending this week with his family in the alpine splendor at 900 metres, booked into his third quarter-final at the event which he has twice won.

Jiri Novak won his 12th match in a row at the Swiss Open yesterday, coming back after a slow start in heavy conditions over Spain's Albert Montanes 3-6, 6-3, 6-3.

The Czech won at this alpine event from 2001 and 2003, beating Roger Federer in the title match a year ago.

Novak, who is enjoying the first of three weeks with his family on the road at European clay events, said that the humidity in the air slowed the courts – a factor not to his liking.

BASTAD (Sweden): Argentine wild card Juan Monaco rallied from a set down for the second straight match yesterday, outlasting Kristof Vliegen of Belgium 5-7, 6-4, 6-1 to become the first quarter-finalist in the Swedish Open.

Monaco will play the winner between sixth-seeded Fernando Gonzalez of Chile and Finland's Jarkko Nieminen in Friday's last eight.

In his opening match on Bastad's slow clay, Monaco upset No. 3 seed Nicolas Massu of Chile after losing the first set.

Monaco's biggest week came at the NASDAQ-100 Open in Miami in March, when he beat Joachim Johansson of Sweden and Gustavo Kuerten of Brazil before losing in the third round.

In a later match defending champion Mariano Zabaleta of Argentina ousted Georgia's Irakli Labadze 6-4, 1-6, 6-3. – Agencies

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