As Wimbledon kicks off for another year, we take a look at some fun Wimbledon facts behind the much-loved championships.
1. What happens to the used balls at Wimbledon?
The tennis balls are changed every nine games and kept at exactly 20°C (68°F) before being used. At the end of each day’s play, fans can buy a can of used balls from that day to raise money for charity – but not those used in semi-finals or finals.
2. Wimbledon royalty
Since 1922 ‘friends and guests’ of Wimbledon have been entertained in the Royal Box. There are 74 seats, all dark green in colour, made in wicker and designed by Lloyd Loom. Each comes with fitted padding for comfort. A coveted invitation includes lunch, tea and, after the day’s matches, drinks at the clubhouse. Men must wear suits with a jacket and tie, while women should ‘dress smartly’ and not wear a hat, so that guests seated behind them have a clear view of the action. Prince Edward, Duke of Kent is currently president of the The All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club while Catherine, The Princess of Wales is the Royal Patron of The All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club. You can regularly spot Kate there each year wearing something stylish.
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3. Wimbledon marathon matches
In 2010 John Isner and Nicolas Mahut played the longest match in tennis history at Wimbledon. It lasted 11 hours and five minutes, over three days, with Isner the eventual victor. The score was 6–4, 3–6, 6–7, 7–6 and 70–68 in the final set! This record won’t ever be broken at Wimbledon again, as a final set tie break at 12-12 has been introduced since.
4. Eyes on the skies: Rufus the hawk
The luscious green courts are maintained by 28 ground staff who keep the lawns manicured to precisely 8mm. The venue is also kept in check by a member of staff called Rufus, the hawk, who flies around Wimbledon for an hour every morning of the championship to scare away local pigeons who might mess up the grounds!
You can follow Rufus on Instagram for his bird's eye view of the tournament...
5. Strawberries and cream
It’s not Wimbledon without strawberries and cream and in 2019 an eye-watering 191,930 portions were served up. All the strawberries are picked at 4am from the highest quality strawberry growing farms in Kent to be served that day. As the largest catering operation for a single annual sporting event in Europe, they also sell more than 18,061 portions of fish and chips, 276,291 glasses of Pimms, 21,917 bottles of Champagne and 64,703 ice-creams!
6. Wimbledon world records
Russia’s Maria Sharapova holds the prestigious honour of the loudest grunt while hitting the ball – it reached 105 decibels which is the equivalent of standing next to an accelerating motorbike! The fastest ever serve goes to US player Taylor Dent who whacked the ball at a dizzying 148mph.
7. Why tennis balls are yellow
An incredible 54,250 yellow tennis balls are used every year, but did you know they used to be white? They only became yellow in 1986 so they could be seen more easily on TV. Did you know, 290 million tennis balls could fit into Centre Court with the roof closed?
8. Wimbledon prize money
When the championship began in 1877, the 22 participants had to pay a guinea to take part. Until 1968 no one earned money for competing and many contenders ended up out of pocket. Today the mens and woman's singles title prize money is £2.35 million!
9. Wimbledon weather
Since Wimbledon weather records started in 1922, there have only been seven championships that weren’t interrupted by rain!
10. Barnado's ball boys
Ball boys and girls, 250 of them, are chosen annually from 1,000 applicants and must pass a fitness test as well as undergo rigorous training. At one time ball boys – and it was only boys – came from Royal Navy training institutions.
From 1946, for twenty years, all the Wimbledon ball boys came from one of Barnardo’s residential schools in Hertfordshire where they learnt a valuable trade to help get them into work.
Being a ball boy was a prized role that often changed lives and with only one third of the schools’ students aged 14 to 18 becoming ball boys, competition to be selected was fierce.
In 2016 to celebrate this partnership, some of the former ball boys returned to Wimbledon to share memories and swap anecdotes about Wimbledon champions, the roaring crowds, and the strawberries and cream.
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Peter Knight, from Twikenham, was placed in the care of Barnado's after his housekeeper mum could no longer look after her boys and the house was bombed and evacuated in the war: “I was a ball boy just after the War. The best thing about being a Wimbledon ball boy was meeting the tennis stars and eating strawberries and cream.
"We also sometimes sold pictures of the tennis stars for 3 shillings!
“One time the American player Dorothy Bundy asked me to have a knock up with her and then gave me her tennis racket."
Michael Hindel, from Bedfordshire, remembers, “On centre court you would get to meet the Queen when she walked through the ball boy line up to meet the winners. She would ask us how we were and if we’d enjoyed ourselves.”
Being a Wimbledon ball boy was a very important job, and there were some specific ground rules the boys had to stick to, as well as honing their lightening-quick reflexes. They had to learn to stand completely still on court during play to avoid distracting competitors.
Chris Cachrimanis, from East Sussex, was part of a legendary match: “In 1958/59 I was a ball boy for one of the longest matches ever. We ran out of balls and had to run off court to get more boxes of balls. I had a great time as a ball boy and was really excited to be a part of Wimbledon.”
Stephanie Anthony is the Deputy Digital Editor of Yours.co.uk. Having worked across a variety of topics, from travel and food to pharmaceuticals, she also has a particular interest in mental health and wellness.