Federica Brignone Speaks Candidly About the Comparison to Jannik Sinner

Ski champion Federica Brignone spoke about Jannik Sinner—the recent Wimbledon champion and current world No. 1 in tennis—in an interview with *Corriere della Sera*. Italian tennis is enjoying a golden age thanks to him: “Jannik is amazing: he’s more mature than his age suggests; he’s respectful, fair, and focused.”

The skier from Valle d’Aosta was cautious about drawing comparisons between Alberto Tomba and Sinner: “He’s not the Alberto Tomba we saw in certain situations. To me, Jannik is already more popular; Alberto had charm and flair—and, besides, he was active in a different era, without social media. In fact, he became ‘Alberto Tomba,’ and it would be interesting to see how much of an impact he’d have today. But Sinner wins in a sport that everyone plays and that’s full of money.”

No comparisons between herself and Sinner either: “Am I as popular as Jannik? Yes, but he can afford to travel on his own private jet; the other day I flew Ryanair and was sitting among the crowd…”

“Skiing generates a lot of interest, but it’s not like tennis. Moreover, I don’t think we’re adequately compensated for the effort we put in to give our all in a single minute of competition—and especially for the risks we take,” said the Italian champion, who also had some words for soccer: “I watched a few World Cup matches, but it’s too political and manipulated. I also hate the intrusiveness of social media: how can people insult someone who misses a penalty kick? Social media is a disease.”