The 135th edition of the priceless and timeless event, Championships, Wimbledon; commonly known as Wimbledon or the Championships; is all set to enthral people across the globe shortly. The tournament unfolds at the All England Club, Wimbledon, London, every year and it is one of the four grand slam tennis events to be held annually as well. As the galaxy of tennis stars descend on the British capital to treat the audiences with some spellbinding displays using their racquets, it would not be a bad idea to go through some interesting aspects associated with the event. Let’s get down to these, one by one.
The Oldest Tennis Tournament
Yes, you read it right. It is the oldest tennis tournament in existence. The Wimbledon began in 1877 at the All England Club in London as Gentleman’s Singles Championship. In the inaugural event, only 22 players participated but now the involvement of athletes has gone beyond 100.
Strict Dress Code For Players
The English people are known to consider rules and regulations as sacred religious rituals. Preserving the tradition, the tournament held in England also has stringent regulations regarding the dress code. As per tournament rules, all players have to be dressed almost in white and umpires can intervene to ensure strict adherence by the participating players. Interestingly, in 2013, seven-time Wimbledon champion Roger Federer was asked to change his shoes because they had orange soles.
Number Of Tennis Balls Used Is Insane
It is being said that around 54,000 tennis balls are used during the tournament, that is a hell of a lot. Also, these are changed after every seven to nine games to keep them in perfect shape. To keep them in good condition, the balls, when not in use, are even refrigerated as well.
A Grass Court Event
The Wimbledon championship happens to be the only tennis tournament that is played on the grass court. The grass on the court is carefully reared throughout the year for the event and during the tournament, the grass is cut to a height precisely of 8mm.
Rufus, The Celebrity Hawk
When the tournament is on, each morning a Harris Hawk called Rufus is unleashed upon the sky above the Wimbledon ground to shoo away the gathering Pigeons. The Rufus does not attack or hurt them, simply scares them away so that they don’t interrupt the games in any way. And it is also interesting to note that the hawk has more than 10K followers on Twitter.
Ball Girls & Boys Go Through Rigorous Training
It is not easy being a ball boy or a girl as they have to go through a lot of harsh conditioning measures prior to entering the ground during the matches. Close to 250 boys and girls are chosen from nearby schools to do the tough job of focussing the balls in play during the game. Before being on-boarded, the boys and girls have to go through a weekly training session of 2.5 hours, which is almost akin to the one in the military.
The Longest Ever Game
At 11 hours and five minutes, the match involving John Isner of the US and Nicolas Mahut of France happened to be the longest ever. The match was also played over three successive days in the 2010 edition. Even reading about the match can make anyone breathless, so just imagine the plight of the two players after the marathon game.
