While Roger Federer’s adult life has been filled with fame and success on and off the tennis court, a throwback photo has revealed that his teenage years were more similar to most of ours than we might expect.
A photo of the tennis maestro’s bedroom has been doing the rounds on social media and shows a 17-year-old Federer grinning for the camera with bleach-blond hair, some spots, and wearing a baggy Nike sweatshirt.
The future World No. 1’s bedroom walls were covered in posters of his teenage idoles, including Pamela Anderson, and NBA stars Michael Jordan and Shaquille O’Neal.
A 17-year-old Roger Federer with pin-ups of Jordan, Pamela Anderson and a Macedonian flag 🇲🇰 in his bedroom in Basel 😀 pic.twitter.com/IPEIqzV9sw
— Luigi Gatto (@gigicat7_) October 24, 2022
Other items dotted around his room included what appears to be an Akubra hat, along with the Montenegrin flag, a mini basketball hoop and a collection of trophies.
Just five years after the photo was taken, Federer would win his first Major at Wimbledon in 2003.
Fans were quick to share their thoughts on the photo, with many sharing lighthearted jokes and commenting on how normal the future star’s room looked.
“Lol i like the 90s randomness of it all,” one person shared.
“Looks like any normal kids room at the time,” another said.
“Really been living up to his two as the blandest white guy on earth since day one,” a third teased.
“The GOAT with my country’s flag 😍,” one fan enthused.
As for his bleached locks, one fan dubbed it his “Eminem phase”, referencing American rapper’s iconic bleach blond hair which he had during the 1990s and 2000s.
Image: Getty Images
This article first appeared on OverSixty.