• London Olympics 2012

London 2012 a priority - Sharapova

Maria Sharapova is targeting success at London 2012 © Getty Images

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Maria Sharapova has set her sights on winning gold at London 2012, with the Russian admitting playing at the Olympics is a lifetime ambition.

Sharapova has never played at the Olympics, having missed the Beijing Games in 2008 with a shoulder injury. And the three-time grand slam champion, who won her first major at the Wimbledon in 2004, is hopeful the grass season will yield double success.

"Representing my country there will be a huge honour for me," Sharapova said. "I'm really looking forward to the grass season. Wimbledon is a big goal every single year.

"And obviously, two weeks later coming into the Olympics, which I've never been a part of in my career - something that I've wanted to do and be a part of since I was a young kid. In Russia, as an athlete, that was the biggest dream, the biggest goal."

Sharapova has reached two of the last three major finals - losing in lopsided fashion to Petra Kvitova at Wimbledon and most recently suffering a 6-3 6-0 defeat to Victoria Azarenka at the Australian Open. But the Russian is confident her performance in Melbourne can be a springboard as she bids to end a four-year wait for another grand slam.

"I didn't play competitively for a few months, and coming in with an injury in the ankle, to have that result in Australia was personally quite big," Sharapova said. "Getting to the final is a step forward toward where I want to get. Obviously, you want to be the one holding the trophy, but it doesn't always work out that way.

"A little luck at times and eventually belief, and it happens. It doesn't come at once, it takes a lot of time and development. As far as this year, I still have many opportunities to hopefully achieve that."

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