Useless facts you probably never knew about Wimbledon
While we may not quite be caught up in the hype surrounding Euro 2016 (although a certain Welsh member of staff is still in shock), we are definitely on board with the tennis championships kicking off very soon in Wimbledon.
Between 27th June and 10th July, Murray, Nadal, the Williams sisters et al will take to the courts once more in what promises to be another fierce contest to become victor on Centre Court.
We’re sure you have already planned your viewing schedule (are you lucky enough to have tickets?) and, to keep you going until the first ball is served, here are 13 weird and wonderful facts about Wimbledon Tennis Championships.
13 Weird & Wonderful Wimbledon Facts
• Last year’s tournament was attended by a whopping 484,391 people
• Over 54,000 tennis balls are used during the Wimbledon championships each year
• Tennis balls were white until 1986, when they were changed to yellow to make it easier for umpires and referees to see them
• Ball girls did not exist until 1985
• 250 ball boys and girls are now employed at Wimbledon each year, selected from a pool of 750 after a rigorous training programme
• The mid-80s saw a lot of change at the Wimbledon championships – as well as ball girls in 1985 and yellow tennis balls in ’86, the last wooden racquet was used in 1987
• The largest ever Wimbledon audience was 17.3 million, who all tuned in to watch our very own Andy Murray take on Novak Djokovic in 2013. He won, in case you’ve forgotten!
• If you think you have bought too much Pimm’s and too many strawberries, think again. Every year, the catering team at the Wimbledon championship serve an astounding 320,000 glasses of Pimm’s, 29,000 bottles of champagne, 12,000kg of salmon and 140,000 punnets of strawberries alongside 30,000 pizzas, 150,000 buns, pastries and doughnuts and 330,000 cups of tea and coffee
• The youngest ever Wimbledon player was the 13-year-old Austrian, Mita Klima, who took part in 1907
• Boris Becker made Wimbledon history three times at the same moment in 1985, when he became the youngest ever male singles champ, the first German winner of Wimbledon and the first unseeded winner. Well done that man!
• The all-time record for aces at Wimbledon is held by Goran Ivanisevic, who scored a massive 212
• At the start of each day, 48 tins of tennis balls are taken onto Centre Court and Court No 1. The outside courts receive 24 tins each
• The global audience for the championships is approximately 379 million people spread across 198 nations
Now, sit back, relax and enjoy the tennis!
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