Andy Murray to go for Olympic gold after tearful exit from Wimbledon

Andy Murray today pledged to put the despair of losing the Wimbledon final behind him and strive for Olympic gold.

After being defeated by world number one Roger Federer in an epic final, he made a tearful exit last night saying he needed to rest.

But he declared: “The Olympics is a special event and I want to make sure I am ready. If I play like I did this week, I have a good chance of winning a medal.”

Murray, who made an emotional Centre Court speech after the four set loss, will aim to win gold in the singles and the men’s doubles with brother Jamie.

Today Jamie, a previous winner of the mixed doubles at Wimbledon, said: “My brother is a champion. He may not have won — but he is a champion. To be able to stand up after all that and take a microphone and deliver that speech shows what kind of person he is.

“Thank you to everyone for their support and kind words about Andy. It has been overwhelming. His day is coming.”

Their mother Judy, Andy’s girlfriend Kim Sears and many on Centre Court were reduced to tears as Murray struggled to come to terms with losing the final. He was the first British player to reach it there since 1938.

But Judy sipped champagne and tweeted: “Lots to celebrate ... amazing day. amazing tourney, amazing son.” Mayor Boris Johnson, who watched the match from the royal box alongside Prime Minister David Cameron told the Standard the match had been a “blinding bit of tennis”.

He added: “It showed how much it means to him, how much passion his has.

“I thought he might do it in the second set, but it was just a fantastic spectacle. Everyone could see how much he cared and he really was not far away at all.”

The British number one, who picked up a £500,000 cheque as runner-up, is planning to take a four-day holiday before turning his attention to preparation for the Olympics. Today, he was spending a quite day with Kim and their two dogs Maggie May and Rusty.