Born: 8/8/81 Nationality: Swiss Seeded: 1 World ranking: 1 French Open best: Quarter-final (2001) Recent record: 2003: 1st round 2002: 1st round 2001: Quarter-final

Federer arrives in Paris hoping to complete the second part of a possible Grand Slam, after winning the Australian Open in January.

Having initially struggled to live up to expectations, Federer broke through in scintillating style at Wimbledon last year, his faultless displays earning him comparisons to the previously untouchable Pete Sampras.

He added six other titles, on all four surfaces, and finished the year by sweeping aside the competition at the Masters Cup.

And in January, he rubber-stamped his status as the world's best player with victory in the Australian Open, destroying a listless Marat Safin in the final.

But while Federer is arguably the most gifted player on the tour and has the game to succeed on all surfaces, his French Open record is poor.

Since reaching the last eight in 2001, he has failed to win a match, losing to the unheralded Luis Horna last year.

However, with two Grand Slam titles under his belt, Federer is a different player now and his win over Guillermo Coria in the Hamburg Masters final in May will have given his confidence a huge boost.