There was a collective national anxiety, as well as excitement, in the air when Andy Murray arrived on Centre Court for the 2013 men’s final with Novak Djokovic – but Sir Chris Hoy has revealed that he never doubted his fellow Scot would win.
And he’s absolutely certain that Murray’s first Wimbledon triumph remains the greatest sporting achievement he has ever witnessed first hand.
Reflecting on that afternoon when he took his place in a box seat awaiting him at Wimbledon, shortly after announcing his retirement from competitive cycling, the six-time Olympic champion told Mail Sport: ‘As soon as I arrived, I knew it was a special day.
‘I was there with my wife Sarra and, beforehand, we went up to the players’ lounge to meet Judy, Andy’s partner Kim, and other members of his family.
‘They were all clearly very excited and nervous. Everyone knew how important an occasion this was.
Sir Andy Murray clinched his first Wimbledon title in 2013 after beating Novak Djokovic
Sir Chris Hoy has recalled being present in the crowd at Centre Court for Murray’s victory
‘I had complete confidence in him. I was convinced he was going to win.
‘I’d seen him before in Melbourne at the Australian Open final against Roger Federer. He hadn’t won that one but, for some reason, I just felt like this was going to be his day. So I was really excited, but also pretty relaxed compared to a lot of people around me.
‘I remember seeing him for the first time at Wimbledon in 2005, and it was the match he lost against David Nalbandian. Here was this young kid and you could see he had this incredible strength, personality and character that shone through. I really thought he had something.
‘Everyone, of course, hoped that one day he would win Wimbledon – but you never wanted to talk about it too much. You didn’t want to be another person putting even more pressure on him.’
Hoy knows what it’s like to be the hero of a nation, but even he was moved by Murray’s extraordinary achievement when he held his nerve to finally beat Djokovic and become the first British man to win the singles title in 77 years.
‘It definitely felt like a moment of history,’ he recalled. ‘For me, it’s the greatest sporting moment I’ve ever witnessed live – and I’ve seen a few over the years.
‘There can’t be any other sport that has an event of that magnitude as its home event, where they hadn’t had a home winner for that length of time.
Hoy insists he had ‘complete confidence’ in Murray and has revelled in the historic moment
Murray’s mother, Judy, and the rest of his family were visibly excited and nervous for the match
‘Perhaps the Tour de France is up there but, for Wimbledon, it was 77 years and the expectation with every year that goes past is huge. It seemed to pile more pressure and expectation on everyone taking part. Other players like Tim Henman had never managed to do it, but Andy seemed to just be a different specimen, really.
‘It just seemed that all the stars aligned that day. Andy’s main desire was becoming the best tennis player in the world and, to do that in an era when you have the three best of all time in Roger Federer, Rafa Nadal and Djokovic is incredible.
‘If it had been a different era, arguably you could say he’d have won more than a couple of Wimbledon titles.
‘But, aside from that, it was a truly remarkable thing to witness and be that close to it all – to be sitting with his family and sitting in the second row was very special indeed.’
Hoy believes that Murray’s mental toughness was ultimately key to his Wimbledon success – and drove him on through the hard times.
Hoy believes Murray’s mental fortitude was able to drag him across the line a decade ago
‘It’s incredibly tough to keep going at that level, and the hardest moments are not necessarily the ones you would think.
‘Yes, it’s tough on the day when you’re on the court or the track like I was, but it’s the day-to-day monotony that’s often the worst.
‘It’s not necessarily about getting medals or winning titles – it’s about getting up on a Tuesday morning and cracking on with things. It’s the unglamorous grind – the mental toughness of being able to do it when nobody is watching and knowing that’s what counts.
‘Getting over the line is obviously important and you’ve got to be able to do it under pressure, but where a lot of people fail is they don’t get the best out of themselves on a day-to-day basis.
‘Andy clearly had that work ethic and mental toughness just to keep grinding it out when he wasn’t getting results, when he was getting close and then tripping at the last hurdle.
‘He didn’t wave the white flag and think it’s never going to happen – he went back to the court, went back to the gym and just kept working and he has never lost that hunger.
Murray recovered from his setbacks superbly against Djokovic and clinched the tournament
‘He seems to be the kind of person who can cope with pressure and has found a way to isolate himself from the external pressures that often trip up other athletes.
‘They spend too much time thinking about what the media or the general public are saying, whereas he seems to just love what he does.
‘As a teenager hitting the top 20 or 30 in the world, suddenly earning lots of money, he could have taken his eye off the ball a bit and his life might have taken a different course but he clearly had the passion to remain in it for the long-haul.
‘As a kid, you got used to seeing Scottish or British athletes getting close but then just not quite making it. Andy turned that around. He has given belief to young people that, if they want it and are willing to work hard enough, they can be a champion, too.’