Federer’s Trick Shot Generates Big Hits
Taking a break from shooting a Gillette commercial, Roger Federer manages a brilliant trick shot, knocking a bottle off a crew member’s head without a moment’s hesitation. Gillette luckily gets the shot on film and uploads it to YouTube, scoring millions of hits in just two weeks.
Sounds too good to be true, and it probably is. The bit about millions of views is true: the video was uploaded on August 16th, and now has over 6 million views on its official upload. The shot itself is probably fake, though Gillette claims it was completed in a single take. But isn’t that the most exciting part? Blog posts have gone up dedicated to decrying the video as fake and showing off some of Federer’s top serves. YouTube commentators passionately argue both sides. It’s a low-stakes controversy that stirs the blood and gets sports fans excited.
Real or fake, there are a lot of winners involved. Federer comes off looking like a champ, Gillette gets the views, and even the British Skin Foundation gets a plug. And no one’s going to complain when (or if) the truth comes out.
