Shot at Olympic berth motivating Venus Williams

Venus Williams eagerly looks forward to the London Olympics, and not just because she wants another gold medal.

Williams also collects Olympic pins, and has souvenirs from each of the Summer Games going back to 2000.

"I pretty much hide them around the house to the point where I can't even find them," said Williams.

"So then it takes me a few months to figure out where I hid them. They're my pride and joy.

"I have an Olympic pin holder set. You unzip it and you open it, and I have 2000 and 2004 in there. Strange enough, I haven't put 2008 in there. I need to get cracking."

Indeed, as the 2012 Games approach, Williams has work to do. She must improve her ranking to qualify, with the teams to be chosen in early June after the French Open.

There's a lot of tennis to be played before the Olympics, including the French Open and Wimbledon. But Williams – a three-time gold medalist - says her focus on the London Games is what motivates her these days to practice.

"My goal is to peak for the Olympics," she said.

"When I don't want to get up or, you know, I want to do something different, then I think about the Olympics and how if I don't do the right thing I might not be there. That keeps me on the straight and narrow," she said.

Williams' ranking fell to 134th because she has been idle for most of the past seven months after being diagnosed with an autoimmune disease that causes fatigue and joint pain. She climbed to 87th by winning four matches at the Sony Ericsson Open in Key Biscayne before a quarterfinal loss last week. In the past, the cutoff for making the Olympics in singles has been around 68th. The former No. 1 and seven-time Grand Slam champion pretends not to monitor her ranking status.

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