Roger Federer: Gold in doubles still 'very special'

BEIJING -- Roger Federer gave an interview that was posted on the U.S. Open website. He was asked about his Olympic gold medal in doubles.

Here is what Roger had to say:

"Umm, well, I mean, some people ask me that, you know, if sort of if it made up for losing the singles, but it's completely irrelevant because it's two completely different things. I had hoped, you know, to make gold in singles and maybe in doubles, and once I lost  the singles I right away played doubles. So there was no time really to be disappointed about it, even though that was the big goal of the season for me as well.

"Like winning Wimbledon and then winning the Olympic gold. So I still got my Olympic gold, but in doubles. Honestly the celebration was much more intense. It was very different to winning alone on a tennis court. You might have heard that. So for me it was very special winning with my teammate."

He also was asked whether losing the No. 1 ranking takes the pressure off and whether the time difference between New York and Beijing will make for a difficult adjustment. U.S. Open play begins this week.

-- Lisa Dillman

Photo: Roger Federer, right, and Stanislas Wawrinka of Switzerland celebrate after winning Olympic gold in the men's doubles. Credit: Philippe Huguen / AFP / Getty Images