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March 25 (UPI) -- Tennis star Roger Federer became the latest professional athlete to use his resources to fight the coronavirus by donating $1.02 million on Wednesday to Swiss families impacted by the pandemic. Federer announced the donation on his social media platforms.
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"These are challenging times for everyone and nobody should be left behind," Federer wrote. "Mirka [Federer's wife] and I have personally decided to donate one million Swiss francs for the most vulnerable families in Switzerland.
"Our contribution is just a start. We hope that others might join in supporting more families in need. Together we can overcome this crisis! Stay healthy!" Federer said on Instagram.
Switzerland had experienced 145 deaths as a result of the coronavirus as of Wednesday morning, according to Johns Hopkins University. There have been 10,456 confirmed cases of the coronavirus in Federer's native country. There have been 19,675 deaths worldwide from the coronavirus.
Women's tennis star Simona Halep announced March 17 she was donating funds to help purchase medical supplies in her hometown of Constanta, Romania, and to Bucharest to fight the coronavirus. Several other past and present tennis stars, including Bianca Andresscu, Caty McNally, John Isner and Martina Hingis, have donated tennis gear to a fundraiser aimed at fighting the coronavirus.
The ATP Tour and WTA Tour are suspended through at least June 7 amid the pandemic. The French Open -- the next Grand Slam on the tennis schedule -- has been moved to September from May.
