Federer Memorabilia Net $4.7 Million at Auction
Voice of America
GENEVA - Roger Federer may have seen his dreams of Olympic gold dashed this week, but he can celebrate that t-shirts, racquets, and shoes from his trophy-laden tennis career proved a treasure trove at auction.
The sports legend saw every single item that went under the hammer at a two-phased Christie's auction sold, raking in $4.7 million. The combined proceeds from an online and a live auction -- over three times more than his 1-million target -- will go to the Roger Federer Foundation, which supports educational projects in southern Africa and his native Switzerland. "I am overwhelmed by the generosity and enthusiasm of the support from around the world," Federer said in a statement.FILE - Part of the temples of Baalbek, a UNESCO world heritage site in Lebanon's eastern Bekaa Valley, illuminated in blue light, Oct. 24, 2015. FILE - This picture shows closed shops on an empty street in the eastern Lebanese city of Baalbek on Oct. 19, 2024. FILE - People walk near the Roman ruins of Baalbek, Lebanon, Jan. 5, 2024. FILE - A man sits amidst the rubble at a site damaged in the aftermath of an Israeli strike on the town of Al-Ain in the Baalbek region, amid the ongoing hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, in Lebanon, Nov. 6, 2024.
Dr. Jaafar al Jotheri, shown here Nov. 10, 2024, holds satellite images and explores the site of the Battle of al-Qadisiyah, which was fought in Mesopotamia -- present-day Iraq -- in the 630s AD. A desert area with scattered plots of agricultural land with features that closely matched the description of the al-Qadisiyah battle site described in historic texts, Nov. 10, 2024.