By James Waterson Photo Credit: Natasha Peterson/Corleve
(September 20, 2011) Roger Federer is used to being recognized as the best in the world.
For good reason, as his career has been defined by breaking records; he’s won a record 16 Grand Slam titles and he’s the first man to be ranked No. 1 for four consecutive years.
As of last week, he can add a new accomplishment to that list.
More than 51,000 people in 25 countries were asked to assess four attributes about a list of 54 people: the degree to which a person is liked, trusted, respected and admired.
Respondents were asked to rank each category on a scale of 0 to 100, with the final average determining their ranking.
The Swiss with a 72.1 average, second to former South African president Nelson Mandela, who had 78.5. Federer finished in front of other public figures known for their philanthropic work, including Bill Gates, Warren Buffett and Bono.
“The results of Reputation Institute’s study confirm that people respect leaders that participate in philanthropic activities outside of their own celebrity,” said Reputation Institute Chairman, Dr. Charles Fombrun.
“The public’s top two on our list, Mandela and Federer, have emotional ties to South Africa, and donate both time and money to the betterment of the region and its people. They get praise for their efforts.”
In 2003, the Swiss star founded the Roger Federer Foundation, an organization which “supports the development of individual skills, searches for innovative possible solutions and acts in a targeted way in order to improve the children’s situation over the long term,” according to the foundation’s website.
The Federer Foundation has programs in South Africa, Ethiopia, Malawi, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Tanzania and Switzerland. The projects in Africa focus on improving the quality of education, while its projects in Switzerland place an emphasis on assisting young sports talent.
Other notable people on the list are Tiger Woods, who finished 47th (one spot above Robert Mugabe, president of Zimbabwe), facebook founder Mark Zuckerburg, Lebron James, David Beckham and Madonna.
Thirteen of the list’s bottom 14 people are politicians. That group includes Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, Dmitry Medvedev, president of Russia, Fidel Castro, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, and Kim Jong-il, who finished with an 11.8 average.
You can see the top 15 people below.
| Rank |
Name |
Rating |
| 1 |
Nelson Mandela |
78.5 |
| 2 |
Roger Federer |
72.1 |
| 3 |
Bill Gates |
71.7 |
| 4 |
Warren Buffett |
69.7 |
| 5 |
Richard Branson |
68.3 |
| 6 |
Steve Jobs |
68.3 |
| 7 |
Oprah Winfrey |
67.7 |
| 8 |
Bono |
67.7 |
| 9 |
Ratan Tata |
66.3 |
| 10 |
Elizabeth II |
64.9 |
| 11 |
Ban Ki-Moon |
64.6 |
| 12 |
Angelina Jolie |
64.3 |
| 13 |
Tenzin Gyatso |
64.3 |
| 14 |
Barack Obama |
64.0 |
| 15 |
Satoru Iwata |
62.2 |