Ever wondered where the ladies get their dresses for the Wimbledon ball? Or where the players stay during the tournament? Or the history of Wimbledon streaking? Or even how many balls they use every year?

Wimbledon was the first organized tennis tournament in the world, and is considered the most prestigious in the world of competitive tennis. It is the only Grand Slam that uses grass, and for many, it’s the most exciting tennis event of the year.

OTB has all the details you need to know — and maybe more! — about the tournament we call “The Championships”.

We humbly present to you The Wimbledon Fact File, aka Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About The Championships, But Were Afraid to Ask*.

*With a tip of the nib to tennis fan Woody Allen.

Fast Facts

• Held at the All England Lawn and Tennis Club in leafy SW19 on the outskirts of London, there are 20 grass courts available for play. There are also five red shale courts, four clay courts, and five indoor courts for AELTC members.

• Wimbledon always starts on the sixth Monday before the first Monday of August.

• Wimbledon starting dates for the five next years are:
  June 21, 2010; June 20, 2011; June 18, 2012; June 24, 2013; June 23, 2014.

• Centre Court seats 13,813 people and the Club grounds hold 34,500 spectators.

• Court 2 is nicknamed “The Graveyard”, because this is where many seeded players go to die are knocked out.

• Aorangi Terrace was once an otherwise unheralded patch of risen grass on the grounds until the BBC erected a giant video screen at the foot of the hill in the late 1990s. It became the spot where fans without tickets to the show courts could gather together to watch the exploits of Britain’s only serious hope for a Wimbledon singles title for decades, Tim Henman, and subsequently became known as “Henman Hill”. In more recent years it’s been redubbed “Murray Mound” in honor of Scotland’s Andy Murray, though there was also a very short-lived campaign to name it “Rusedski Ridge” after Britain’s Greg Rusedski. Check out a virtual tour here.

• Media operation at Wimbledon are conducted out of the Millennium Building, and play host to a press corps of over 750 journalists and photographers from around the world. Check out this article for more.

• Two of the most highly held traditions of Wimbledon are the rule that the players must wear predominantly white, and that the players are referred to as “Mr”, “Mrs” and “Miss”. (More on the whites-only rule is below)

History

The Lawn Tennis Championships at Wimbledon have evolved from the garden party atmosphere of its first meeting in 1877 witnessed by a few hundred spectators, to its current status as the top professional tournament attracting an attendance of almost half a million people. And through the press and the Internet, a following of millions more sit up for Wimbledon every year throughout the world.

• First Played in 1877, the tournament featured Men’s singles play. It was then followed by Women’s singles and Men’s Doubles in 1884; and Women’s Doubles & Mixed Doubles in 1913.

• From a field of 22 players, the first final winner at Wimbledon was 27 year old Spencer Gore (no relation to Al), in front of an audience of just 200 people. He defeated William Marshall in straight sets, in just 48 minutes.

• Since 1877 Wimbledon has been halted twice — by the World Wars. They lost four years during WWI, and six during WWII.
  

• During World War II, a bomb ripped through Centre Court at the All England Club and 1,200 seats were lost. Fortunately, they weren’t filled at the time! Play finally resumed in 1946 but it wasn’t until 1949 that the area was back in top shape.

• Wimbledon moved to its present site in Church Road in 1922.

• The last British man to win Wimbledon was Fred Perry in 1936. He was a three-time Wimbledon champion. 2009 marks the centenary of Perry’s birth. (Read more about Perry here)

• The last British woman to win Wimbledon was Virginia Wade in 1977, after sixteen tries.

• But the British always dare to dream.

• The last wooden racquet was used at Wimbledon in 1987. USA Today got 10 modern players to try out wooden racquets at the 2007 Sony Ericsson Open. Check out their reactions here.

• Wimbledon was first televised in color TV in 1967. …On the BBC, of course.

• The 1973 tournament was beset by a players’ strike which saw 79 players — including 13 of the 16 seeds — withdraw because Yugoslavian player Nikki Pilic was suspended. This left Jan Kodes, the new number two seed, to take the Gentleman’s Singles Championships that year.

• In 1977, the Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Museum was first opened. In 2006, the museum received a multi-million pound state-of-the-art transformation, making it one of the most popular tourist sites around London — especially for tennis fans.

• Over the years, assorted streakers have graced the courts. In 1996, a young woman wearing only a tiny apron dashed across the court just before the final between Richard Krajicek and MaliVai Washington. In 2002, a self-described “serial streaker” enlivened the rain delay during Lleytons Hewitt’s three-set victory over David Nalbandian in their final. And in 2006, a streaker performed a cartwheel on Centre Court during the quarterfinal between Russian beauties Maria Sharapova and Elena Dementieva.

• Not to be shown up, Roger Federer had his own on-court visitors just days after Sharapova and Dementieva. They were just drawing attention to father’s right though. Oh, and they were clothed.

The Trophies

• The Ladies’ Singles Trophy is a silver salver, 18 ¾-inches in diameter, referred to as the ‘Rosewater Dish’ or ‘Venus Rosewater Dish’. It was first won by the Champion when the challenge round was introduced in 1886.

• The Rosewater is actually a copy of an electrotype created by German artist Caspar Enderlein from the pewter original, The Temperantia, by French artist Francois Briot. While the original Temperantia sits in the Louvre, another reproduction can be found in the Powerhouse Museum in Sydney, Australia. Check it out up-close here.

  

• The Men’s singles trophy is a silver gilt cup and cover, standing 18 ½-inches high and has a diameter of 7 ½-inches. It is inscribed “The All England Lawn Tennis Club Single Handed Champion of the World.” The lid is shaped with a pineapple on top and a head covered with a winged helmet beneath each handle. There are two decorative borders with floral work and oval styled moldings on the bowl of the Cup and on the handles.

• The Gentlemen’s Doubles Championship trophy is a silver challenge cup, which was presented to the All England Club in 1884 by the Oxford University Lawn Tennis Club who sponsored the original doubles play in 1879. The Gentlemen’s Doubles was played at Oxford University from 1879-1883 but moved to Wimbledon in 1884.

• The Ladies’ Doubles Championship is an elegant silver cup and cover, known as ‘The Duchess of Kent Challenge Cup’, presented to the Club in 1949 by HRH the Princess Marina, President of the All England Club.

• The Mixed Doubles Championship trophy is a silver challenge cup and cover presented to the All England Club by the family of the late S.H. Smith, who won the doubles title in 1902 and 1906.

• Since 1949 all champions have received a miniature replica of the trophy, measuring 8 inches tall or 8 inches in diameter.

Rain

Whoever said that death and taxes are the only two certainties in life clearly never went to Wimbledon. Because if they had, they would have known that you can also be sure that at some point in the fortnight you will get a total drenching.

• One of the most popular items at Wimbledon is the £10 easy-grab telescopic green and purple umbrella. It’s second only to its larger cousin, the £20 spectator umbrella.

• When the rain comes, the translucent cover is pulled out. It was first introduced onto the Centre Court in 1998, and weighs 1 ton — wet and dry.

• It takes 17 people 30 seconds to cover the court.

• Wimbledon Number 1 Court has large fans at either end to dry them out in case of rain.

• Plans for the modernizing of Centre Court were first presented in January 2004 and included a transparent retractable roof over Centre Court as well as an increase in capacity to 15,000. Work on this project began in 2006, and for the 2007 Championships Centre Court were played with no overhanging roof at all, exposing spectators to the elements — and great views of the surrounding area.

• 2009 marks the beginning of a new era in tennis history, with the addition of a roof over Wimbledon’s Centre Court. Read more about it here.

• Years when play extended into a third week due to rain delays: 1919, 1922, 1925, 1927, 1930, 1963, 1972, 1973, 1982, 1988, 1989, 1991, 1992, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2001.

• Years with no rain at all: 1931, 1976, 1977, 1993, 1995.

• Other relevant weather years:
  1949: The best ever, sunshine for the entire Championship
  1955: An extreme downpour flooded the tunnels next to Centre Court
  1976: The hottest on record, with temps reaching to 34C (94F)
  1985: A storm poured over an inch of rain in just 20 minutes
  1991: By far the wettest first week on record. After 4 days only 52 of 240 matches were completed!

• Check out the 10-day forecast for the London area here.

Technology at Wimbledon

When you think of Wimbledon, the first concept that probably springs to mind is that of tradition. While Wimbledon’s history of polite upkeep of tradition may seem out of sync with modern conventions, The Championships have been one of the most advanced events to utilize technology for some time, reminding us that we’re in a new age of sport.

• IBM is the technology partner for Wimbledon.

• Over 1,000 statistics are collected simultaneously for every match on the 18 courts, for every point, during every match, in real time for the IBM Real-Time solutions and Scoreboard.

• For the past two years, IBM staffers have created their own Second Life versions of the event — on their own time, and with support from the company. Read more at eightbar, a blog written by a few of the devs.

• The Championships used Hawk-Eye line calling for the first time in 2007.

• To read more on technology at Wimbledon, get in-depth with our very own Wimbledon Technology Guide.

New Balls, Please

• Over 300 students from local schools compete annually for the prestige of being one of the 200 ball kids at The Championships. Read more about their training here.

• Slazenger has provided every tennis ball for The Championships at Wimbledon since 1902.

• All Slazenger balls are produced in one facility in The Philippines.

• Each year, Wimbledon places an order for 5,000 dozen (60,000) Dunlop Slazenger balls, for use in the roughly 680 matches during the Wimbledon Championship. Only about 1,250 dozen of these balls are actually used in the tournament. The rest are sold on the grounds as souvenirs.

• Yellow balls were used for the first time in 1986 to make the speeding balls more visible for television cameras, due to pleas from BBC producers that white simply wouldn’t do.

Tennis Whites

Speaking of white, one of the tournament’s most serious codes is that players wear almost entirely white. For more than a century, Wimbledon has fiercely guarded this genteel reputation that sets it apart from other tournaments.

• The “Players must play predominately in white” rule was introduced in 1963 and the “almost entirely in white” rule was introduced in 1995.

• The Chair Umpire for the match decides whether players are dressed appropriately.

• When Gussie Moran wore a short, lace trimmed skirt in 1949, she was accused by the AELTC of ‘bringing vulgarity and sin into tennis’.

• Andre Agassi refused to play Wimbledon from 1988 to 1990 because of the all-white dress code and what he regarded as the stuffy atmosphere.

  

• Anna Kournikova was ordered to change in 2002 when she was caught practicing in black shorts.

• In 2006, German apparel manufacturer Adidas took on AELTC in a different court — “the High Court in London” and won a temporary ruling allowing its three-striped logo to appear on players’ clothing at the tournament. Wimbledon wanted to limit the size of branding to 4 sq in.

• In a somewhat ironic move, soon after the court case was settled, Wimbledon unveiled new navy blue outfits from Polo by Ralph Lauren, featuring its oversized polo player, for its 570 umpires and ball kids.

• Over the years, some players have tried to buck the all-white rules, though most comply. Anne White made her name in the ’80s by trying something different. For her first round match at Wimbledon, she wore an all-white, skin-tight body suit. At one set all, the match was postponed overnight and she was quietly told by the Wimbledon officials not to wear it the next day. She lost that match, but gained worldwide attention.

• In 2006, American Bethanie Mattek raised eyebrows with her bizarre fashion sense, but since she had complied with the all-white rule, she was allowed to play. Read more.

• The 2006 guide for competitors was updated to warn players that they risked being defaulted if they broke the tournament’s code of almost entirely white and most certainly decent clothing.

• In 2007, the always stylist Roger Federer mistakenly put on his signature Nike pants backwards during the trophy ceremony.

The Royals

When you speak of Britain, one can’t help think of the Royal family. Many people are endeared the sport of tennis, including Kings, Queens, Dukes and Duchesses. If you’re a VVIP and you want to enjoy the matches, The Royal Box is the place to be and be seen.

• The Royal Box is used for the entertainment of guests from the Royal Family as well as the tennis world, including supporters of British tennis and other walks of life.

• Invitations come from the Chairman of the AELTC and the Committee of Management of The Championships, taking into account suggestions from the committee members of the Club, The LTA and other sources.

• Guests are invited to the Clubhouse for lunch, tea and drinks at the end of the day.

• Men are asked to wear suits or a jacket and tie. Ladies are asked not to wear hats, as they tend to obscure the vision of those seated behind them.

• The Royal Box contains 75 dark green Lloyd Loom wicker chairs.

• The guest list is released on the same day, for security reasons.

• In 2003, in accordance with the wishes of HRH The Duke of Kent, the Club’s President, it was agreed that the time was right to discontinue the tradition of players bowing/curtsying to members of the Royal family on entering or leaving the Centre Court. The only exceptions will be if HM The Queen and HRH The Prince of Wales are in attendance.

• Neither Queen Elizabeth II nor Prince Charles have attended the event since the 1970s.

Superlative Records

• In 2001 play was extended into the fourteenth day.

• The highest recorded attendance was also in 2001, with 490,081.

• The highest recorded attendance for a normal 13 days was also in 2001, with 476,711.

• The highest recorded attendance for a single day was in June 26th, 2002 with 42,457 visitors.

• The shortest person to play tennis at Wimbledon was Miss C.G. Hoahing who was just 4 feet 9 inches. There’s a rumor that one of the ushers mistook her for a garden gnome.

• The tallest competitor ever, was and is, Ivo Karlovic, at 6 feet, 10 inches.

• In 1996, Martina Hingis won the Ladies singles titles and was 15 years, 282 days old, when she won the women’s doubles with Helena Sukova of Czech Republic.

• The youngest male champion was Boris Becker who won the Men’s singles title in 1985 at 17 years, 227 days.

• The youngest ever player at Wimbledon was Mita Klima of Austria, who was 13 years old in the 1907 singles competition.

• The youngest seed was Jennifer Capriati at 14 yr 89 days at the time of her first match on 26 June 1990. She won the match, making her the youngest ever winner at Wimbledon.

• The oldest champion was Martina Navratilova at 46 years, 8 months young when she won the Mixed Doubles title in 2003 with Leander Paes.

• Jean Borotra of France entered Men’s singles competition 35 times between 1922 and 1964. He earned his last title at the age of 41. In 1977, Borotra appeared in the Veterans’ Doubles at the ripe age of 78, making his Wimbledon love affair last for 55 years.

• In 1999, British hopeful Gred Rusedski served up 685 aces during the tournament, which accounted for 79% of all his points for the year. Not bad considering he went out in the 4th round.

• Venus Williams became the second African American woman to win the Grand Slam title at the 2000 Ladies singles title. She followed a childhood hero, Althea Gibson, who won titles in 1957 and 1958.

Oh, There’s Food Too?

A tradition at Wimbledon is strawberries and cream, which some fans are said to eat for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. This year things may be different, as the farm that supplies the tennis tournament says it and other market gardens only got less than half of the 4,400 seasonal workers they needed.

Rest assured, no one will starve.

• Each year around 6,200 lbs of strawberries are consumed at the event, helped down by 1,500 gallons of cream.

• Wimbledon usually orders up 24 tons of Kent strawberries for this tradition.

• 312,000 bottles of water were consumed, along with more than 14,000 bottles of champagne, at Wimbledon in 2002.

• Along with:
  335,000 cups of tea and coffee
  150,000 buns, scones, pastries and doughnuts
  140,000 ice creams
  95,000 pints of beer and lager
  80,000 half pints of Pimms
  30,000 portions of fish and chips
  and 12,000 kilos of poached and smoked salmon

• Also adding a lovely bit of color to the grounds are approximately 25,000 petunias, 26,000 geraniums, and 3,500 hydrangeas which are supplied each year.

Still Hungry?

Still curious where the gowns come from or where the players stay? Check out the More Good Stuff links below.

Did we miss something? Do you have anything to add? Did we get something all wrong? Just wanna sing our praises? The comments section below is the place for you.

Thanks for reading and enjoy the fortnight

More Good Stuff:

• Player Housing in SW19
• If You Lose the Match, Win the Fashion Contest
• Virtual Tour of AELTC
• Television Schedule
• Host Your Own Mornings at Wimbledon Brunch
• Having a Ball Dress Hire
• Ticket and Travel Advice for Getting to the Championships
• Behind-the-Scenes: Serving Up Technology at Wimbledon