Skiing legend Lindsey Vonn had her fingers burned when she dared to suggest Roger Federer was the GOAT of tennis last month – and now she has poured fuel on the fire by re-entering the debate.

 

 

Vonn would not have been aware that Novak Djokovic’s more passionate supporters do not take kindly to the suggestion that their man has a challenger to the title of ‘greatest of all-time’ in the men’s game.

So when she posted messages of her skiing day with Federer and suggested he was the GOAT of tennis, the backlash that came her way took her by surprise.

Djokovic fans were quick to bombard Vonn with less-than-pleasant messages pointing out what they perceived to be the error of her ways, forcing her to post subsequent messages insisting her comments were not a swipe at Djokovic’s greatness.

The images of Vonn skiing with Federer came with this heartwarming message for the Swiss maestro.

“Have to take some time to really reflect on what it this means to me… I have admired Roger as an athlete, philanthropist and incredible champion for so many years,” said Vonn.

“Normally, people you look up to always let you down in one way or another, but not Roger. Rog is the epitome of a true sportsman and champion in every sense of the word.

“We’ve been talking about skiing together for such a long time I wasn’t sure if it would happen… but here we are; retired, skiing and enjoying life!”

Vonn then made the mistake of engaging with a Djokovic fan who argued Federer was not the best tennis player ever as she replied: “I don’t classify goats only on statistics alone. Rog will away be the goat to me.”

While Vonn would not have expected her opinion to spark an angry response, she was surprised to see Djokovic’s devoted fans bombard her with messages that forced her to delete her suggestion that Federer is the greatest tennis player of them all.

“GOAT or greatest of all time is a subjective title,” she wrote in a subsequent tweet
“What makes someone great? Is it statistics? Is it records? Is it impact? Is it character? Is it all of the above? People have differences of opinion and that’s OK.

 

 

“My goat might not be your goat and there will always be a debate but opinions are just that, opinions, and everyone is entitled to them.

The post wasn’t a comparison, it was a tribute to my friend who has made a big impact in my life. Everyone just freaks out when the term goat is used. He can be my goat no matter what other people think.”

Vonn was clearly taken aback by the reaction to her messages, but she has had a chance to redress the balance after a meeting with Djokovic ahead of his return to action at the Indian Wells tournament in California.

This time, Vonn suggested she was excited to meet Djokovic and referred to him as ‘the goat’, as she again suggested there can be more than one leading man in tennis
It remains to be seen whether Djokovic fans will agree with the sentiment that everyone can have their own favourite GOAT, but at least Vonn has given love to all the great players of the modern game now.

The skiing icon confirmed her passion for tennis was burning brightly on Sunday as she was in the audience for the ‘Netflix Slam’ that saw Carlos Alcaraz beat Rafael Nadal in a glitzy event in Las Vegas.