My Olympic Memory: Virginia Ruano Pascual

The Olympics were completely different each time. When I won my first medal in Athens, I was world No. 1 in doubles, I was playing with Conchita [Martinez], and the Chinese team was not very well known. We thought we had a really great chance to win the gold medal. So, it was sad to lose and I can say it is one of the worst defeats of my career. The most bitter. It took me some months to get over it.

But in Beijing it was the opposite situation. That was my last Games, I was playing with Anabel Medina [Garrigues] and we were not sure about our real chances. We knew the final against the Williamses was going to be hard. So, once we knew we were going to win a medal, I wanted to enjoy it because I didn’t want to have the Athens experience again, where it was hard for me to celebrate it.

The first time on the podium was weird because it was a situation I had watched on TV, the one I had dreamt about but I knew we were not going to listen to the Spanish anthem - it was strange being there without having the gold medal. But in Beijing, just the fact of being on the podium was the most important thing. I enjoyed the medals ceremony a lot.

You never know if you will be able to be in the Olympics or not, if you will have a good enough ranking, if injuries will allow you to play - because they are every four years. In my case, I took it as a really special experience because I never knew my future. Also, you compete there representing your country and more people are watching you, even if they don’t like tennis at all. You know they are following you.

For me it has been a great experience, the chance to be at three Olympic Games sharing that time with the rest of the athletes. It is a unique experience being in the Olympic Village; it has nothing to do with Grand Slams, where you only represent yourself. Tennis is an individual sport and the only similar competition is Fed Cup because you are inside a team and you feel wrapped.

After the first one we went home and it was very emotional. I live in Madrid but we landed in Barcelona, and it was full of people waiting for us and also some media. It was something new because normally no one goes to wait for you at the airport.

I have both medals at home and I see them every day. I often think about it. When I see the Spanish basketball team, I remember my medals because at the Olympics I spent good times with the basketball players.

In Beijing, the Rafa Nadal phenomenon was incredible. All the tennis players spent their time together there, going together to have lunch at the Olympic Village. And it was incredible the huge numbers of sportsmen and women who came to ask him for an autograph, and he kindly did it for every one of them. It was more uncomfortable for us than for him.

Both medals have been really important for me, a unique experience completely different to Grand Slams. I didn’t get the gold medal but when you look back you see the silver ones as gold ones. When I look back and I see I was able to be at the Olympic Games and I won two medals at them, it seems incredible.