On the eve of the Queen’s Club championship nearly two weeks ago, Andy Murray was announced as part of the Great Britain Olympic team for the fifth time in his career. The Olympics have become, in a way, Murray’s one stronghold at the top of professional tennis. He remains the only player in the Open era to win two singles gold medals, which is more than Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer combined.
During his press conference that day, Murray was asked about his success in the Olympics and what his medals have meant to his career. He discussed London 2012 at the All England Club, a narrative-shifting triumph that proved an essential step towards his three grand slam wins, and also his epic repeat at Rio 2016. But Murray spent almost as much time discussing his heartbreaks, from his excruciating cramps in his first round singles loss at Beijing 2008 to his misery in 2021, where he and Joe Salisbury came so close to a men’s doubles medal in Tokyo.
