Having just experienced her "best Wimbledon" in England, Japanese No. 1 Ai Sugiyama is taking her top form into Athens hoping to win an Olympic medal or two.
But more than that, she wants to enjoy herself in other ways as well in her third Olympics, likely to be her last.
"I was able to get the feeling that I can do as well as this," Sugiyama said of her performances at the Wimbledon Championships where she made the women's singles quarterfinals, the women's doubles final and the mixed doubles semifinals.
"I will also aim for a top finish at the Olympics. I think I have a chance," said the 29-year-old native of Kanagawa Prefecture, who has yet to claim an Olympic medal.
Sugiyama said she will stay at the athletes' village this time, unlike at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics and 2000 Sydney Games, where she made early exits, and take in all she can, including watching her compatriots in action.
"I want to see if I can take part in the opening ceremony, if the scheduling works out, and watch other competitions such as women's soccer and Ai-chan," she said.
"I want to enjoy the Olympics in its entirety as this will probably be my last one," Sugiyama said. Olympic tennis will be played Aug. 15-22.
Sugiyama, who has three Grand Slam women's doubles titles, will try to win a medal in the women's singles and doubles at Athens, pairing up with Shinobu Asagoe in the latter event.