The Olympics are calling Davenport

By Mark Lamport-Stokes

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Former world number one Lindsay Davenport says her decision to return to the game after a year in retirement was largely motivated by the chance of competing at next year's Olympics in Beijing.

Davenport, who gave birth to a son, Jagger, in June before mounting a triumphant WTA Tour comeback, was a gold medalist in the women's singles at the 1996 Atlanta Games.

"To go back to the Olympics as a mother and a wife and have my whole family there would be so amazingly different than the 12 years before in Atlanta," Davenport, 31, told Reuters in a telephone interview on Thursday.

"I was lucky enough to be in Atlanta and on the Sydney team (in 2000) but I turned down the chance to go to Athens in 2004 which was a decision that sometimes I regret."

Davenport, who has won two titles in three tournaments since returning to singles action at the WTA event in Bali in September, treasures her gold medal from Atlanta.

"It was the first big thing I won and a huge honor," the former Wimbledon, U.S. Open and Australian Open champion said.

"Being Olympic champion is kind of bigger than tennis and at that point I hadn't been a grand slam champion yet. My dad was an Olympian, my family were there in Atlanta and it was a huge moment for me.

"When I won the U.S. Open in 1998, it seemed to give me more validity as a player. Those two were certainly big turning points in my career and it's hard to compare them."

Now that she is juggling motherhood and professional tennis, Davenport has no desire to return to the circuit full time.

UNCHARTED TERRITORY

"I have never navigated these waters before -- having a baby -- and trying to do what is best for Jagger is first and foremost," she said.

"But I'm excited about playing again and I am planning to go to Australia right after Christmas to play my first grand slam since my son was born.

"Then luckily for me the Tour goes back to the States in the spring and obviously traveling in the U.S. is a lot easier for me and Jagger. Then we'll just see how it goes. I hope to play not a full-time schedule but maybe a semi-full schedule."

One of the pioneers of the power game in women's tennis, Davenport has set her sights on competing in three of the four grand slam events next season.

"My goals are to be able to play the Australian Open, to get to Wimbledon, play the Olympics and obviously I would love to play the U.S. Open one more time," she said.