By Michelle Kaufman | Miami Herald

Wimbledon earlier this month was the most important date on the tennis calendar, the Super Bowl of serves and volleys, the day even the casual fan might tune in to see if Roger Federer would win his sixth consecutive Wimbledon title, or if Spanish two-time runner-up Rafael Nadal could finally beat the No. 1 Swiss on his favorite surface. This year, Nadal won.

Only weeks from that moment, Federer and Nadal could find themselves across the net from each other again, competing for an Olympic gold medal at the lotus-flower-shaped tennis center in Beijing.

Will it matter as much to them as the Wimbledon trophy? Will it matter as much to sports fans?

It begs the question — Does tennis belong in the Olympics in the first place? If the Olympics are not the pinnacle of a sport, if a gold medal is not the most coveted prize, should it be included on the already overcrowded Olympic menu? If the athletes in a particular sport are used to five-star hotels and entourages, will they be excited about lodging in pre-fab dormitories in the athletes' village?

Apparently so, because 17 of the top 20 men will carve time out of their cramped schedule to make the trek to Beijing, as will 18 of the top 20 women. The top five men and the top five women will be there, and several of them said a key reason they're going is to mingle with other athletes in the village.

Unlike soccer, which sends the under-23 teams, and boxing, which uses the Olympics as an amateur stepping stone to the pros, tennis chooses to send its best athletes.

Twins Bob and Mike Bryan recall walking with the U.S. delegation in the 2004 Athens opening ceremonies carrying a camcorder, soaking in the experience.

"We made a seven-minute highlight video afterward of all the cool stuff we saw," Mike Bryan said. "We went to swimming one day and saw Michael Phelps win a gold medal. It was really cool during the Opening Ceremony having the basketball team right next to us. Tim Duncan, LeBron James, Allen Iverson. They were stars among the stars. Volleyball player Kerri Walsh is our great friend, so we hung out with her a lot, and she brought volleyball players to our matches. We all share a common bond, being Olympians."

Tennis players are so keen on the Olympic experience that 40 of them posed as athletes from other summer or winter sports as part of a new promotional book for Olympic tennis. Federer posed as a fencer. No. 1 Ana Ivanovic posed on South Beach as a beach volleyball player. Nadal appears as a soccer player, Novak Djokovic as a skier, Maria Sharapova as a rhythmic gymnast and Serena Williams as a figure skater (she likes the outfits).

Many players on the tennis tour have Olympic roots. Lindsay Davenport's father played volleyball in the 1968 Olympics. Leander Paes of India, a five-time Olympian, was conceived at the 1972 Munich Olympics. His father won a bronze medal in field hockey, and his mother was the captain of the Indian women's basketball team.

Svetlana Kuznetsova's brother won a silver medal in cycling at the 1996 Olympics, and her father has coached six Olympic cyclists. Nadia Petrova's mother won a bronze medal in the 400-meter relay in the Montreal Olympics. Andre Agassi's father was an Olympic boxer for Iran.

"The Olympics and the U.S. Open are definitely the top two career highlights, and the Olympics was my No. 1 goal when I came back from having my baby," Davenport said. "Tennis is measured on Grand Slams, so winning the U.S. Open was like a huge, huge achievement. But I would think for my family and the Olympics being the first big thing that I won, it always has a special place in my heart. Whenever the Olympics were on - winter, summer - when I was growing up, it was on our TV all day long. I remember sitting there watching Mary Lou Retton win the gold medal live. I was up way past my bedtime L.A. time because she did the vault so late."

Tennis was one of the nine original sports in the Athens Olympics in 1896. Ireland's John Boland defeated Greece's Dionysios Kasdaglis in the final. In 1900, gold medalist Charlotte Cooper of England competed in an ankle-length Victorian dress and became the first woman to win a medal in any sport. But tennis was dropped in 1924 and wasn't reinstated until 1988.

"Yeah, I think tennis belongs," Federer said. "We're part of the Olympics since, what is it, 20 years now? I'm very glad. Basketball has professionals, as well. I think the Olympics is a celebration of sport, so I think as many different sports should be able to take part. I think everybody's fighting to get into the draw of the Olympics. I know that probably 99 percent of the guys really want to go."

American Andy Roddick is one of the exceptions. He competed at the 2004 Olympics, and said it was "an honor" and a memory he treasures, but he took a pass this time. He said he would rather spend August gearing up for the U.S. Open.

"I'm really glad that I got to experience it, and really glad that I went," Roddick said of the Athens Games. "It's one of the neatest things that I've done. That being said, maybe let one of the other guys have the experience. At this point in my career, I'd like to put another major on the board, and that's my focus."

James Blake is one of the Americans who will go, and he can't wait.

"It's going to be a thrill," Blake said. "I've never been there. Never been part of the team. Being part of the Davis Cup team is always an honor. But the Olympic team, it's a little different. I'm excited to interact with all the other athletes. Because for them, it's the biggest thing in their careers, and to see how hard they've trained and just talk to them about how much they've sacrificed to get to that point is going to be a lot of fun. Hopefully I can meet a lot of new people."

He wasn't sure, however, if winning an Olympic gold would match winning a Grand Slam — neither of which he has done.

"I think a Grand Slam title in this sport is what's viewed historically as a bigger deal," Blake said. "I was shocked when I did an exhibition with Lindsay Davenport, Andre Agassi and Steffi Graf, all three of whom have gold medals.

"When they asked them what their greatest memories of their tennis careers were, none of the three mentioned the gold medal, which was very surprising to me. I feel like it would be such a thrill and such an honor . . .

"In tennis, we have four Grand Slams every year. So the medal doesn't have maybe the same meaning, but it would be an honor to help the country in the medal count and be a part of a team that's really proud of you."