TORONTO - Milos Raonic won't mind a travel headache this summer.
The hard-serving 21-year-old will represent Canada at the London Olympics starting later this month, and is also scheduled to take part at the Rogers Cup tournament the following week in Toronto.
A good showing at the Games could mean travel and fatigue issues, but those are problems Raonic would welcome.
"If this is a problem you're faced with, it's a good problem to have," Raonic said Tuesday at a media event in Toronto. "I'm sure that anybody who's able to put themselves in a winning position at the Olympics is going to have a good opportunity to be in a winning position here."
But the 24th-ranked men's player will be in tough on the grass courts at Wimbledon, where the tennis events at the Olympics will be held.
Most of the top players are scheduled to play in the 64-man field, including Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic and 2008 gold medallist Raphael Nadal.
Raonic says although not as prestigious as one of tennis' four majors, the Olympics are an event players mark on their calendars.
"It's very big. I think all the players know how important it is to them," he said. "When you look back at a player's career and who might be the greatest, the only thing Federer might feel like he's missing that Nadal might have is the Olympic gold in singles.
"Since it's such a rare opportunity, I think it just amps up the hype around it quite a bit."
Raonic, who was born in Montenegro but moved to Thornhill, Ont., with his family when he was three, has faced repeated questions since he became the face of Canadian tennis over his long-term commitment to playing for this country.
Other Canadian athletes have jumped ship in the past, but Raonic hopes his Olympic participation will finally put the issue to rest.
"There really isn't even second thoughts about this decision for me — I play for Canada," he said. "Canada has been great for me, been great to my family, been great to everybody.
"I don't think I would be here if it wasn't for the resources, the opportunities and the situation my family was able to give themselves in Canada, so I'm grateful to Canada and I try to show back the same respect."
The Olympic tournament runs from July 28 to Aug. 5, while the Rogers Cup main draw starts Aug. 6. Despite the possibility of quick turnaround following a trans-Atlantic flight, Raonic is also looking forward to taking part in his hometown tournament in Toronto.
"It's definitely something I really look forward to and I feel like it's a place where I do play well. I trained on those courts many times," said Raonic, who missed last year's Rogers Cup in Montreal with a hip injury. "I know what I have to expect from them and I know how they will play. So it's definitely a situation that I feel very comfortable and at ease with."
Asked which event he would prefer to win — the Olympics or the Rogers Cup — Raonic answered "both" with a smile.
But when talk tuned to Olympic gold or a major title, he was much more definitive.
"The reason a major stands out is because of the prestige. It has been an event a longer time, especially a major like Wimbledon — it's been won by an exclusive list of really great players," Raonic said. "It speaks to the history of tennis, about the prestige of the event and it's every kid's dream.
