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Roger Federer has elite, one-of-a-kind movement.
- A renowned American fitness coach says Roger Federer does one thing differently to everybody else.
- Federer, a 20-time Grand Slam tennis champion, has extraordinary movement that belies his age (36).
- The coach argues Federer has expert time management and his approach to training is something other professionals should follow.
- This might be because Federer has skipped the entire clay season so he can be as fit and as fresh as possible for the Wimbledon Championships, a tournament he has won a record eight times.
Andre Agassi's former fitness coach has added more weight to the argument that Roger Federer is a one-of-a-kind athlete.
A 20-time Grand Slam champion, Federer has set many seemingly unbreakable records and has a playing style that younger professionals are being told to copy.
However, one expert says other athletes may not be able to mimic Federer because he is doing things that few professionals are able to.
Gil Reyes, an American fitness trainer renowned for his strength and conditioning work with former world number one ranked tennis player Andre Agassi, says Federer manages his training regime in an expert manner, something other players and trainers struggle to accomplish. Federer also displays extraordinary movement on the court.
"Roger moves as well as ever," Reyes told ESPN via TennisWorldUSA. "He's so quick out of a corner. His [redirect] step is really amazing. He doesn't slam on the brakes and lock up a knee before turning. He just drops his hips, bends his knees - he's like a giant spring."
It is not just Federer's movement that impresses Reyes. The Swiss veteran, who turns 37 in August, has skipped the clay season so he can be as fit and as fresh as possible for the 2018 Wimbledon Championships in July.
And this approach to time management and to training is something that stands Federer apart, according to Reyes.
"Some guys [trainers as well as players], the natural reaction to frustration is to think, 'Maybe I need to work harder.' But that may not be the solution, especially when a player is older. The challenge is to figure out how to work differently."
Federer has not competed since his shock second round loss to Thanasi Kokkinakis at the Miami Open in March. He is not expected back at an ATP event until the Stuttgart Open in June.