Mass celebration held for Davis Cup heroes

The triumphant Swiss tennis team led the crowd of fans in a mass cheer after being welcomed back to Switzerland Keystone

Over 10,000 tennis fans turned out in Lausanne on Monday afternoon to welcome back the first ever Swiss team to win the Davis Cup. The team travelled straight from Geneva airport after their return flight from France, to celebrate with their fans.

Roger Federer, Stanislas Wawrinka, Marco Chiudinelli, Michael Lammer and team captain Severin Lüthi took to the stage, holding the tournament’s large trophy high above their heads as the crowd sung and cheered.

Wawrinka described the win as the fulfillment of a “childhood dream”. The public celebration was held in Lausanne to pay homage to Wawrinka, Roger Federer said.  

The 29-year-old was born in the French-speaking Swiss city and grew up in a village 13 kilometres away.

Federer told the crowd the day following their 3:1 win against France had been “the craziest 24 hours of my career”, adding that the weekend overall had been “wonderful, the atmosphere fantastic”.

Federer went on to say that although he was “very nervous before the final”, he counted himself “lucky” to be a player in a team that not only gave him “the necessary motivation”, but also allowed him to loosen up and get over the pressure before the big game.