Swiss Review 4/2018

Swiss Review / July 2018 / No.4 19 became his own double when he plays?Was his father Robert really the Swiss wrestling champion? The an- swer is no, but the story remains plau- sible. The novel is filled with mytho- logical fabrications, such as the story that claims the champion’s future mother – who is actually South Afri- can by birth – visitedNelsonMandela as a Red Cross representative. And that the hero advised her to leave that racist country. “Everything is all false, of course, except the passages with Je- sus,” as the back cover claims. So where did “Rodger” get his su- perpowers from? That is the question at the heart of this comic story. Sure, part of the champion’s strength stems from his father, who worked in the pharmaceutical industry and one day fell into a cauldron of a cocktail of chemicals destined for the Swiss Army. But the central explanation is different: that GodHimself had tasked Jesus with finding Him a successor (see box opposite). It was thismessage that revealed itself to Robert in the toilets of the Swiss tennis club in Jo- hannesburg, of which he was a mem- ber, as was his future wife, Lynette Durand. Cut scenes and a parcel to Ohio So has the book’smain character read it? Herrmann admits that his contacts in the industry weren’t much help in reaching Roger. The album was sent to the star’s manager in Ohio. “I’ll be so happy” a person in the secretary’s office had said on the phone, claiming that the book had indeed been passed on to the champion. “I’m sure he would have read the book and wouldn’t have liked it,” says Herr- mann, who had already cut certain scenes fromhis work on the advice of another star, this one a Genevan law- yer. ‘Rodger, l’enfance de l’art,’ published by Herrmine, 2018, 80 pp. “Roger Federer is more like a sort of saint” Is Switzerland’s favourite sportsman divine? Swiss Review put the ques- tion to two theologians who are also sports fans. DenisMüller, anhonoraryprofessor at Geneva University, wrote the book ‘Le football, ses dieux et ses démons’ [Foot- ball, its Gods and its Demons]. Olivier Bauer from Canton Vaud is the author of a book on the religious fervour of supporters of Montreal’s ice hockey team. What did they think of this comic album, which claims Roger Federer was predestined to have a supernatural career? “It’s all very amusing, but barely credible,” says Denis Müller. “Federer is an excep- tional champion, but he is partly self-made, with the ac- companying highs and lows. He is the outcome of training, talent and circumstances.” Müller puts the public’s obsession with the tennis player on a par with “quasi-religions that are im- itations of religions, but remain a far cry from real religions”. “There isn't a Church of St. Federer, but certainly one dedicated to Mara- dona,” quips Olivier Bauer, reminding us that “the aimof tennis is to destroy your opponent, andRoger Federer is a product designed tomakemoney, nei- ther of which are goals of religions”. The theologian also stresses the exces- sive amounts of money tennis stars earn. “It’s fundamentally unjust that one person can amass somuchmoney,” he says. A Swiss model Will Swiss religious aspirations be sublimated in their love of this sports- man, presented humorously as Jesus’ successor? “Jesus died on the cross at the age of 33,” Dennis Müller replies. “His achievements were linguistic and therapeutic in nature. At age 36, Federer is preparing for a second ca- reer rather than a resurrec- tion.” Bauer reminds us that the tennis player has failed on several occasions: “He had glandular fever and sometimes lost to low- er-ranking players. If any- thing, Federer encourages us to be better people, to de- fend our country better, but everyone knows that he’s not godlike. In theology, we don’t con- fuse Jesus of Nazareth with God Him- self. Even in the Holy Trinity, Christ is the son of God; the crucified one.” Olivier Bauer says you can use the- ological tools to interpret the image of the Swiss star even without recourse to the divine. He sees Federer as being more like the saints. “He’s an ideal man, amodel to followat a time in our history in which people are united by sport, whereas in the past they did so more during patriotic gatherings, wrestling competitions or at Church.” The athlete from Basel would also make the perfect example of Swiss- ness. “He appeals to everyone, a little bit like Bernhard Russi. Some people would also like the Swiss to be like Federer: a country that doesn’t make too much fuss.” Olivier Bauer is the author of a book about ice hockey as a religion Denis Müller, honorary professor at the University of Geneva