Strawberries and whipped cream, grass courts and almost 100 years of tradition. This is the famous Wimbledon

The third Grand Slam of the season is approaching and the tennis players are once again moving to the famous All England Club. In London, the 135th edition of the famous Wimbledon will be played on the grass courts. Join us for a look at the history and highlights of the tournament, which is famous for its traditions and which this year has to do without Russian and Belarusian tennis players.

The tradition of this tournament dates back to the 19th century, specifically to 1877. Back then, 22 men entered the competition and had to pay one guinea (about £1 and 5 pence). The tournament, delayed by several days due to rain, was won by Spencer Gore, who defeated William Marshall in the final in 48 minutes by 6:1, 6:2 and 6:4. Gore received 12 guineas in prize money.

It was still played in the London Borough of Wimbledon at the time. However, the name of the tournament remained the same when the All England Club moved to Church Road in the borough of Brent and Harrow in 1922. By then the tournament had also featured women (from 1884) who, like the men, played doubles. While the men had played pairs since 1884, the women had played doubles since 1913, as well as mixed doubles.

Until the aforementioned 1922, a very specific format was played. Namely, the defending champion qualified directly for the finals of the next year’s tournament and, as is currently the case in chess, the winner had to wait for a new challenger.

The tournament was not played during both world wars. In 1940, a bomb even hit part of the grounds, damaging the 1,200 seats on Centre Court at the All England Club. It was not restored until the 1949 tournament.

Ever since more non-British players began to participate in Wimbledon, the home players have struggled to win titles. Seven British women have rejoiced since 1918, the last being Virginia Wade in 1977. For men, there are only five titles, and they are split between only two players. The most recent champion is Andy Murray, who won in 2013 and 2016. In the 1940s, Fred Perry rejoiced three times in a row.

In the history of Grand Slams, Czech tennis players have also been successful. Among men, Jan Kodeš was the winner in 1973, while Ivan Lendl and Tomas Berdych have reached the final twice and once respectively. In the women’s category, Jana Novotná (from 1998), who was in the final twice more, and Petra Kvitová have triumphs. She is also the last Czech winner of the “Big Four” tournament, having reigned in London in 2011 and 2014.

Strawberries and whipped cream are inseparable from Wimbledon. Around 34 tonnes of the red fruit and 10,000 litres of whipped cream are consumed annually. It is always played in the UK from the last Monday in June. The title is defended by Novak Djokovic, Ashleigh Barty has retired and the trophy will go to someone else.

Russian and Belarusian tennis players are banned for this year’s edition, which means Wimbledon will lose world number one Daniil Medvedev. After a long hiatus, the legendary Serena Williams returns to the courts.

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