TENNIS
The UK might not have produced a Grand Slam champion in a few years, but it’s still home to the world’s best tennis tournament. Kath Hudson finds out what goes on in the Wimbledon build up
Gearing up for Wimbledon
sporting heritage and is an iconic event for the UK. Even those who don’t know Alex Bogdanovic from Rafael Nadal start to show an interest when the sport hits prime time TV in mid June.
G
reen grass, tennis whites, strawberries and cream, Cliff Richard, Murray Mound…. Wimbledon has a massive
The oldest tennis tournament in the
world, and widely considered the most prestigious of the four Grand Slams, Wimbledon is the only one still played on grass (the game’s original surface). Now gearing up for the 125th Cham- pionships, the management at the All England Lawn Tennis Club is continually looking for ways to refine and improve
the experience – making sure it retains its character, but also keeps up with the modern game.
Ongoing improvement All England Lawn Tennis Club chief executive, Ian Ritchie, emphasises the importance of continual improvement: “In recent years we’ve had a complete transformation of the grounds and ancil- lary facilities to enhance the customer experience,” he says. “We’ve added the Centre Court retractable roof for use in inclement weather, we’ve installed wider, padded seating for comfort and now of- fer a wider selection of catering choices. We’ve also enhanced the player and me- dia facilities – all of which have improved the tournament immeasurably.” Built in 1922 and arguably the most
famous tennis court in the world, Cen- tre Court has been through major
The All England Tennis Club opens its doors to 40,000 spectators each day of the 13-day Wimbledon tournament
46 Read Sports Management online
sportsmanagement.co.uk/digital Issue 2 2011 © cybertrek 2011
PHOTO: TOM LOVELOCK / AELTC
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