Cultural Calendar

July 2019
Many of the world’s most popular sports (such as football, members of the Royal Family often come to watch the
basketball, volleyball, rugby, and possibly tennis) were matches. Players have to bow or curtesy if the Queen
invented in England - a fact which many Englishmen are very

es
proud about. But what does it mean to ‘invent’ a sport?
Unlike telescopes and smartphones, sports are generally quite
bl
simple things that anyone can invent. They do not usually
Wom
require advanced technology or expensive equipment, and
often involve simply hitting, kicking, or throwing things. So The
how do we know, for example, that a group of children in the
Andes did not create a game similar to football or volleyball
thousands of years ago?

This is why there is still much debate about who invented

tennis. If you tell a Frenchman that tennis is an English
invention, he will say “Pah! C’est ridicule!” Nearly 1000 years
ago, the French used to play a game called ‘jeu de paume,’
which was similar to tennis except that they hit the ball with
their hand (not a racket). Over time, the modern game
developed with rackets, nets, yellow balls and service boxes.
In the 1870s, the first annual tennis tournaments were set up
in England, with Wimbledon hosting the “All England” tennis
championships in 1877. So did the English invent tennis? Or
do they just enjoy annoying the French?

The debate goes on. But the Wimbledon Tennis
Championships (also known as ‘Wimbledon’) is stronger and
more popular today than ever. Wimbledon is a district in
West London. It is famous for two things - tennis, and the
Wombles of Wimbledon (fictional, furry animals who
apparently live there. They have their own TV series, and a
music band - you can find videos of the Wombles online)
The tennis tournament is held every year in June/July, and is
one of the four major tennis tournaments in the world. These
are known as the ‘Grand Slams’, and also include the Roland
Garros in Paris, the Australian Open, and the US Open. Each
year, hundreds of men and women are invited to play in the
Singles, Doubles, or Mixed Doubles tournament (the only
event where men and women play together). There are 19
tennis courts in total, the most important of which is Centre
Court where the semi-finals and finals are played. In England
you can never be sure that it won’t rain, even in summer.
Players cannot play in the rain as it destroys the grass and can
result in injuries. To stop this happening in the final, Centre
Court now has a roof which can open and close.
(Elizabeth II) or the Prince of Wales (Prince Charles) is in the
audience.
So what about the British players? Are they dominating the
courts of Wimbledon? Not really. Federer, Nadal, and
Djokovic (from Switzerland, Spain, and Serbia) have
dominated the Wimbledon Mens recently, and the American
Serena Williams for the Womens.
However, after nearly 80 years without a male, British
champion of Wimbledon, Andy Murray (Scotland) arrived. He
won Wimbledon in 2013, and 2016, and won Olympic Gold
in London 2012.
And, finally, what snacks can you buy while watching a
tennis match? Hotdogs? Packets of crisps? No, no - this
would not be British enough. The typical snack at
Wimbledon is strawberries and cream, and in 2017
Wimbledon fans consumed 34,000kg of strawberries and
10,000 litres of cream. Yum yum!

Wimbledon is the only Grand Slam played on a grass court, BY: JOSEPH GALLACHER - LOS JARDINES TEACHER
and also the only one which has a strict all-white uniform,
including shoes and socks. It is a very British affair, and

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