Federer shaves - for fans

SHANGHAI: Roger Federer showed Chinese youths the manly art of shaving as the world No.1 moved through a round of high-profile sponsor appearances two days before the start of the Masters Cup.

Federer has been packing in his commercial responsibilities in the days leading up to the eight-man year-end showdown, which he has won for three of the last four years.

The 26-year-old put on a shaving demonstration for a crowd of 1,000 rapture college men who got to see the tennis hero up close.

Federer even demonstrated the shaving art using his sponsor's high-tech razor, before taking questions from fans.

The winner of a dozen Grand Slams confirmed again that he hopes to play for another nine years and get as far as the 2012 Olympic event.

"I hope I play for a very long time," he said. "I'm healthy and fit."

Federer will not start his Red group play until Sunday, when number two rivals Rafael Nadal begins round-robin proceedings against Richard Gasquet.

Keeping his trademark humour and poise, the Swiss demonstrated a correct shave using a larger-than-life replica of his sponsor's newest product on a projection screen. He then invited people from the crowd to do the same.