Briton Andy Murray, the first male tennis player to claim two Olympic singles gold medals, yesterday said that he would play the final event of his glittering career at the Paris Games before heading into retirement.
Murray, widely regarded as one of Britain’s all-time great sportsmen, won gold in London 2012 beating Roger Federer in the final and successfully defended his title in Rio de Janeiro four years later by defeating Juan Martin del Potro.
The 37-year-old, who in 2013 ended a 77-year wait for a British men’s singles champion at Wimbledon and won the trophy again in 2016, had previously said he was unlikely to continue his career beyond this year.
Photo: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY
“Arrived in Paris for my last ever tennis tournament @Olympics,” Murray wrote on X, alongside a picture of himself on the podium at the Rio Games. “Competing for Britain has been by far the most memorable weeks of my career and I’m extremely proud to get do it one final time.”
The injury-plagued Murray received a star-studded, emotional farewell earlier this month at Wimbledon, where he won two of his three major titles, following a first-round doubles defeat partnering with his elder brother, Jamie Murray.
The Scot, who had surgery on June 22 to remove a spinal cyst that was compressing his nerves and made him lose control and power in his right leg, said he was not fit enough for the demands of singles competition at the All England Club.
His hopes of a final hurrah partnering fellow former US Open champion Emma Raducanu in mixed doubles at Wimbledon were dashed when she withdrew due to a wrist issue.
The tennis competition at the Olympics begins on Saturday and Andy Murray, who made his Olympic debut in Beijing 2008, would play in singles and doubles in his fifth and final Games.
Andy Murray has a mixed doubles silver from the London Games, where he partnered Laura Robson.
The former world No. 1 resurrected his career after having hip-resurfacing surgery in 2019, but has struggled to make the latter stages of leading tournaments since and endured an ankle injury earlier this season in Miami.
“I want to play forever. I love the sport and it’s given me so much. It’s taught me loads of lessons over the years I can use for the rest of my life. I don’t want to stop so it is hard,” he said at the All England Club.
Additional reporting by AFP
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