The 17-time Grand Slam champion Roger Federer has confirmed that he is likely to skip the rest of the season due to a knee injury, therefore the Swiss international will not be a part of the Rio Olympics, which get underway early next month.
Federer, 34, who underwent surgery earlier this year, says that his body needs “more extensive rehabilitation” on the injury if he is to prolong his career.
He has announced that he will sit out on the bench for the rest of the campaign.
“I’m extremely disappointed to announce that I will not be able to represent Switzerland at the Olympic Games in Rio and that I will also miss the remainder of the season,” Federer said in a statement posted on Facebook.
“Considering all options after consulting with my doctors and my team, I have made the very difficult decision to call an end to my 2016 season as I need more extensive rehabilitation following my knee surgery earlier this year.
“The doctors advised that if I want to play on the ATP World Tour injury free for another few years, as I intend to do, I must give both my knee and body the proper time to fully recover. It is tough to miss the rest of the year. However, the silver lining is that this experience has made me realise how lucky I have been throughout my career with very few injuries.
“The love I have for tennis, the competition, tournaments and of course you, the fans remains intact. I am as motivated as ever and plan to put all my energy towards coming back strong, healthy and in shape to play attacking tennis in 2017. Thanks for your continued support.”
Federer has been sidelines since losing in the semi-finals of Wimbledon earlier this month, ending his hopes of winning an 8th title at SW19.