This past Wednesday, Switzerland celebrated Swiss National Day, a holiday that commemorates the foundation of the Swiss Confederacy on August 1, 1291. As it turns out, it’s an especially big week for the Swiss, as national hero — and No. 1 ranked tennis player in the world — Roger Federer competes in the Olympics, searching for his first gold medal in singles competition. As Federer seeks that elusive gold, another Swiss-born sensation is taking the WWE Universe by storm in search of WWE title gold.
Antonio Cesaro reintroduced himself to the WWE Universe Friday night on SmackDown, saying hello in five different languages and proving once again why he truly is a man of the world. He also established himself as a formidable threat to United States Championship, as the former rugby standout defeated Santino Marella in an impressive non-title bout. For Cesaro, his Friday night victory marked the second straight week he has bested the U.S. Champion — a feat that has turned a number of heads around the WWE Universe.
Cesaro seems ready to rise through the ranks in WWE, and his big win has WWE.com thinking about other similarities between the up-and-coming Swiss-born Superstar and the great Roger Federer. After all, aside from their shared nationality, Federer and Cesaro are both highly cultured men who speak a bevy of different languages fluently. That’s not all these two Swiss stars have in common, though.
Both athletes are just about the same age, and like Federer, Cesaro’s significant other comes from his chosen profession. Federer is married to a former tennis player, and Cesaro is currently involved with the lovely Diva, Aksana. They’re also both coffee aficionados.
Often in sports, one talks about the tools that make up a great player. In the case of Federer, he possesses a dominant, precise forehand and arguably the game’s best placement serve, both of which make him a legendary tennis player. Similarly, Cesaro has shown tremendous ability inside the squared circle, demonstrating speed, agility and power in his repertoire, and proving that he can put opponents away with a variety of different moves.
While Federer has cemented his place atop the tennis world as one of the greatest competitors in the storied history of the sport, Cesaro is a Superstar on the rise and looking to make a huge impact in WWE. By all accounts, the former rugby player has the ability to do just that. Like Federer, Cesaro is a naturally gifted, world-class athlete for whom the sky is the limit. He has shown a propensity for high-impact moves in the ring, but also relies on precision strikes — just as Federer does — to round out his offensive assault.
As the world watches to see if Federer can, in fact, capture Olympic gold, so too will the WWE Universe keep its eyes on the fast-rising Cesaro.