Rio Olympics 2016: Princess Anne almost poked by Andy Murray with flag
Andy Murray, who is currently the second-ranking tennis player in the world, has been given the honour of Great Britain flag bearer for the Olympic opening ceremony. Murray is excellent in holding rackets but he should improve his skills in holding a flagpole as he almost poked the face of Princess Anne while hosting the flag for Great Britain.
The number one British tennis player was displaying the flag to the media, standing beside Princess Anne, who is herself a former Olympian and currently an International Olympic Committee member. The professional Scottish player, who won Wimbledon recently, did not do well with the flag in the pre-Olympic event just two days before the opening ceremony.
Also read: Rio Olympics 2016, Tennis: Top 5 contenders for the Olympic Gold in Men’s Singles
The reigning Olympic Singles Champion spoke in a press conference just the day before the ceremony and blamed the photographers for what happened in the pre-opening ceremony. As quoted in The Sydney Morning Herald, Murray said "I'm going to blame the photographers for what happened last night, because I was being given directions and then ended up putting the flag in Princess Anne's face. I didn't know what to do to be honest.”
Also read: Rio Olympics 2016 Tennis: Novak Djokovic v Juan Martin del Potro opener headlines men’s draw
The tennis player added "The flag's huge, so as soon as I took the flag it was covering someone's face. Last night didn't go so well. But I see the funny side of it and try and get a bit of practice before tomorrow night."
When Murray was asked about the Princess’s reaction, the tennis player replied that the Princess hoped Murray would not poke her eyes out.
The three-time grand slam winner and Olympic gold medalist four years ago in London, expressed his excitement to have been rewarded with flag-bearing duties for the Maracana extravaganza. He said “It’s by far the proudest moment in my professional career. I never thought I'd get the opportunity to do this. There's nothing more I can say about it to be honest. I'll remember it for the rest of my life, that's for sure."
Murray even said that he loves the feeling of competing for his country and he believes that it brings the best of him.
The tennis champion is going to begin his singles title against Serbia’s Viktor Troicki. Andy and his brother Jamie Murray, the Murray brothers will start their doubles event on the same day against Brazil’s Thomaz Bellucci and Andre Sa.