BERLIN - Boris Becker has advised world tennis No 1 Roger Federer to live in the athletes' village at the Olympics in Beijing rather than seek more private quarters away from the Games.

Switzerland's Roger Federer leaves the court after losing his match to Britain's Andy Murray at the ATP Dubai Tennis Championships, March 3, 2008. [Agencies]

Federer said this week he was unsure whether to stay with his fellow athletes after experiencing difficulties in Athens in 2004. But Becker, a gold medalist in Barcelona in 1992, said he should only consider staying apart as a last resort.

"That was our trick in Barcelona, staying at the Olympic village," Becker, who won gold in the doubles with Michael Stich, said in an interview with Reuters.

"To get into the right frame of mind, to understand what the Olympics is all about, you should try to be as often as you can in the Village, to mingle with the other athletes. I think that gives you a much bigger motivation.

"I'd absolutely recommend that Federer stays there.

"But let's say he should have a bed in the Swiss quarter and maybe if it's really terrible his girlfriend should have a bed ready in a five-star hotel next door. That would be the ideal choice."

Becker won six Grand Slam titles and also helped Germany to two Davis Cup wins but, now 40, he looks back on his Olympic experience with ever greater fondness.

"The older I get the more important it becomes," Becker said. "I was in the team four times and I got hurt three times. The one time in Barcelona in 1992 it was in August, I lost singles early. My only chance was with Michael Stich.

Stick together

"We were not best friends but we realized that if we could stick together we could go all the way. Now looking back it stands out as one of my great victories."

Becker has a career as a TV reporter and commentator and he is now trying his hand at poker, playing on the Pokerstars European tour.

He laughed off media reports this week suggesting he was taking up the game professionally, while playing down the importance of recent reports into gambling in tennis.

"The main thing for me is to have a good time," he said. "I don't have the talent or the time to be a professional poker player. I don't even bet, and I never heard anything about players gambling during my time. There wasn't even doping then!

"I think the story is bigger than the reality. Yes, a couple of players were caught. They weren't in the top 10 or even in the top 20 or 30. Yes it's a story, but I don't think it's going to affect anyone very much."

As for the future, Becker has no plans to return to tennis in any serious way but he is excited about the future.

"I think for a while it was boring," Becker said. "I thought two or three years ago it was a given: Roger Federer was playing and Roger Federer would win.

"He's still a very dominant player and he's still my top pick for Wimbledon, for the US Open, for the No 1 world ranking. I don't think anyone comes close yet.

"But you have younger players who are hungry. He has to work more than he has had to do in the past and that's good."