London - Angleterre
2024-07-01 / 2024-07-14
Known to the Brits as “The Championships”, and as Wimbledon to the rest of us (in honour of the London neighbourhood where it is played), it has been held since 3 July 1877, making it the oldest tennis tournament in the world. It has always been played on grass, the least common court service on the professional tour today. The All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club is the owner and organiser of Wimbledon. Because of the court surface, the tournament has most often been dominated by offensive players, especially in the modern era. Pete Sampras, Boris Becker, Stefan Edberg and Patrick Rafter have showcased the serve-and-volley style, just as Martina Navratilova (9 titles) did in the women’s field. More recently Roger Federer has become the king of the castle with his eight titles. In 2013, the Scot thrilled Great Britain by winning the tournament, some 77 years after the Englishman Fred Perry. The match that set every record came in the summer of 2010, when the American John Isner beat France’s Nicolas Mahut after 11 hours and 5 minutes of play over three days.
