Wimbledon Tennis Championships

The Lawn Tennis Championships at Wimbledon

From its first year back in 1877, the Tennis Championships at Wimbledon now attracts over 500,000 visitors to the tournament. Competitors from over 60 countries take part in the only Grand Slam that is played on grass courts and millions of people tune across the globe to watch them fight it out.

Not only is the annual championships a huge crowd pleaser, but it will be opened up for the 2012 Olympics. The last time the Olympic tennis tournaments was held here was in 1948. Back in 1908, British players dominated the sport and we racked up a considerable number of medals. Since then of course the winning players from the UK are few and far between, out most recent great hope, Scotsman, Andy Murray.

Lets take a look back of some of the great tennis legends…

BJORN BORG - winning 5 Wimbledon singles championships, this player from Sweden also clocked up three wins at the French Open. Bjorn’s great success was only hampered when at 26, he burned out mentally and physically. However his 8 years on the circuit made him one of the greatest players ever.

JIMMY CONNORS – personified the American wild west and was the housewives favourite throughout his career. Physically one of the fittest players on the circuit and with a mean double handed backhand, this player was a hard one to beat. He was one of the most charismatic players on the circuit and brought the spotlight onto the sport with thousands queuing up to see him play. During his remarkable 23 year career, Jimmy won the tournament twice and lost his title on one of the most memorable finals against Arthur Ashe. Along with his Wimbledon titles, Connors also won 5 US Opens and the Australian Open. In all he won an outstanding 109 titles – a record hard to beat even with today’s quality players.

JOHN McENROE – the American won the singles titles 3 times, he also bought charisma, talent, attitude and fun to the Centre Court making him one of the most memorable tennis players to date. John’s behaviour was unlike other players, he crossed the line more than once and this was all part of the McEnroe package that made his fans love him so much. His skill as a player was second to none, he played tactically and with skill and variety of play he outwitted many opponents. Compare this to the one trick ponys on the circuit today with only a fast serve to get them through.

FRED PERRY – The last great British winner at Wimbledon – wining the Singles title 3 times and the only player to win the final in 3 straight sets three times. His first match at Wimbledon was in 1929, just a month after his 20th birthday. He made it to the second round, the next year he was in round three. 1932 saw him through to the quarter finals and in 1934, whilst recovering from an ankle injury Fred made it to the final and beat Jack Crawford in just over an hour.

PETE SAMPRAS – Pete has the most Grand Slam singles titles ever. With 14 titles altogether – 7 of them Wimbledon titles, Sampras was the king of Centre Court during his reign. Pete’s dedication and passion to the sport were his charm, and although not the most charismatic of players on the pitch, he was truly dedicated to his sport and this is shown by his retaining his number 1 in the world spot for 6 years. Pete never won in Paris at the French Open, but coming to Wimbledon, his second home lifted him and his game. In one of the most exciting finals ever, in 1999, Sampras beat Agassi in a display of the best grass court tennis Wimbledon had ever seen. “Today he walked on water” said the defeated Agassi after the match.

And now the women…

MARTINA NAVRATILOVA – Winning the singles championship a record 9 times in her dazzling career, Martina is one of the greatest female players the sport has seen. Her career spanned 4 decades and in 2003 she became the oldest woman to win the doubles title at aged 46. She also won the doubles title 7 times and the mixed doubles 4 times.

BILLIE JEAN KING – This champion contributed more to the game of tennis than any other player. Her ‘Battle of the Sexes’ match against Bobby Riggs in 1973 was watched by a television audience of 90 million and sparked the interest of tennis in the USA. Her reign at Wimbledon between 1961 and 1979 saw King collect 6 singles titles, 10 doubles and 4 mixed. A record she shares with Navratilova.

STEFFI GRAF – Winning the singles title 7 times, Grafs career was stellar. At aged 16 she reached the last 4 of the US Open. In 1988 Steffi won her first Wimbledon and that same year she also won all 4 Grand Slam Tournaments – the third woman to ever do this. She topped this by winning the Olympics in Seoul as well. Staying in the number one spot for 377 weeks and winning 106 tour titles contributed to be winnings of over $20 million. The world was shocked in 1993 when a fan stabbed her opponent in the back in order to help her get her number one spot. She retired in 1999 following a defeat by Lindsay Davenport.

2006 at Wimbledon… Roger Federer won his fourth consecutive title last year beating Rafael Nadal. Amelie Mauresmo fought her way to an emotional victory over Justine Henin-Hardenne. The 2006 tournament was dominated by Europeans, with the US players not making it to the second week.