Ahead of the Games, we caught up with Team Leader and Head of Women’s Tennis at the LTA, Iain Bates to get an insight into what it’s like at the team’s camp in the build up to an event like the Olympics.

What has the Team GB camp been like so far?

The team came out Monday morning and were straight into their first practice at Roland Garros that evening – so they’ve spent a lot of time out on court already.

There’s a number of different parts to the camp. You have the work on site at Roland Garros, which is a venue the players know well. Although it’s dressed very differently for the Olympics, so they have to get used to certain things being in different places and it’s a lot quieter at the moment than the French Open – but mostly it’s somewhere they all feel pretty comfortable.

Then there is the Team GB Performance Lodge which is a great facility just for British athletes. This has a great gym, recovery and treatment areas, and incredible food. This is the place we have spent the most time this week and all the players and staff love it!

Finally, you’ve got the Village, which is a very busy and vibrant section of the Olympics. The players are really enjoying being around all the other Team GB athletes and pin-seeking seems to be the hot hobby of the group.

At the Olympics, everyone is given pins representing their country and the idea is that you swap them with other athletes from all over the world. It seems to take up almost all their waking hours in the Village, trying to exchange them – the rarer the better seems to be the game.

Andy Murray is the leader in this game and has already got pins from Guam and Surinam which have the smallest number of athletes.

The spirit and the vibe have been great so far, they all seem to be really enjoying the environment. That combination of being somewhere they know but also the excitement of being with all the other athletes is something they’ve all got stuck in to straight away.

Before the event has even started, what’s it like telling the players they are in the team?

There were different reactions from different players as you’d expect. In most cases players already know that they are in based on ranking, but to be able to call them up and tell them yourself is a great part of the job.

We have a few first time Olympians this time, which was great. Cam Norrie and Dan Evans were very cool and pumped as you’d expect. Katie Boulter was really excited when I told her. She probably won the award for biggest reaction to be honest.

When you’re calling any of them to tell them they are playing an Olympics, whether it’s the first time or in Heather Watson's case fourth time, or in Andy’s case fifth, it’s always special especially when you get a nice reaction, that’s what makes the hard work worth it.

What does a day look like in Team GB tennis camp?

It’s different for the singles and doubles players, but let’s take today for example. We were at the BOA Performance Lodge this morning because several players had media to do, so they will go there, do their interviews, film social media clips, etc.

After that they all head on site and split off to do their on-court training. Today for example Katie was playing with Coco Gauff where she was prepping for the singles, then Dan was hitting with Ugo Humbert before doubles with Andy and the Americans, Joe Salisbury and Neal Skupski were out playing with the Germans. So, all very busy but specific to the events each player is preparing for.

They’ll all play for a few hours on court and then after they’ll head back to the Performance Lodge for various treatments to focus on recovery, get some food and then inevitably head back to the Village to go collect more pins!

What’s the Olympic Village like?

The Village itself is vast – you can’t quite believe how many people there are. We’re in a block with TeamGB athletes only, which has been great, and it is nice for all the players to mix with other people they would have never met before.

I’ve been in four Olympic Villages and this is definitely a good one. The rooms are a good size, new, modern, clean. As you might have seen online, all the beds are actually made from cardboard but they have good mattresses with a soft topper so you can’t tell at all.

In the TeamGB block we also have great performance services available for all the players. There’s a medical area, physio area, there’s a team lounge, there’s even a Costa barista in there to provide coffee for all the athletes, which is always important in these weeks.

Our players have also used the bikes that are available to make getting around easier, there is one huge dining room as well as some smaller ones and plenty of spaces to relax and chill.

Why is the Olympics so unique?

There’s a big difference between the Olympics and the Billie Jean King Cup or Davis Cup even though they are all events where you are playing for your country. reasons.

At the Olympics the players are still playing for their own success in many ways, even though they are part of Team GB. It’s a draw rather than a team event so it’s not like your result – win or lose – counts towards an overall score, you’re out there to try and win yourself a medal but at the same time contribute to the overall medal success of Team GB across all sports!

This means that players will still prepare in their own way rather than all together. At othe team events you’re always going to be practicing with your teammates, but here, you can hit with anyone from any nation as you don’t know who you’re going to be playing. That gives more variety and more options but also takes more planning and organising. The team have been doing a great job with that here.

They also don’t have to wait to hear whether a captain has selected them to play in a specific match – they’re all in the draws and are all ready to get started from the opening round. It’s much more like a regular tournament.

What are some of the challenges for you during the Olympics?

Working in the Olympics is very different to being on tour or even at other team competitions because we have a much smaller team of support staff even though there are more players on the Olympic team as there are less accreditations available, so we all have to pick up different roles.

That can bring its own challenges as well – as it is easier for small things to get missed but we have a great team here in Paris with coaching and support staff.

A lot of the time some of the biggest challenges are actually smaller operational things that you wouldn’t even think given the sheer size and scale of the Olympics.

Transport is a bit of a challenge at times, we had one afternoon where all the buses were cancelled from the Village to the venue. Food, especially at the Village, can be problematic especially at peak times when the queues can he huge. Then there's accreditation and making sure everybody has access to the right areas for their work, which sounds so basic, is one of the most common challenges.

Finally, scheduling and getting enough practice time can be tough, especially once all the teams are on site, so you have to have your finger on the pulse to get enough court time. As an example on Friday, the venue closes at 12:30 ahead of the opening ceremony so all the players have to have finished their training by that time, so with only the morning available being at the front of the queue for practice is essential.