In today's blog we're taking a look at six fun facts that you might not have known about the world's favourite tennis tournament. From future kings to Scottish tennis superstars, the courts of Wimbledon have some stories to tell. Read on to find out more. 

Wimbledon, also known as The Championships, is one of the four major Grand Slam tennis tournaments, alongside the French Open, the Australian Open, and the US Open. It is the oldest and is widely regarded as the most prestigious tennis tournament in the world. Held annually at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in Wimbledon, London, the tournament draws millions of viewers from across the globe and inspires people to pick up a racquet and give tennis a try. 

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Wimbledon Was First Established for Croquet

The First Ladies Wimbledon Championships Was Formed in 1884

Wimbledon Hosted Its First Olympic Games in 1908

Wimbledon served as the tennis venue for the 1908 Summer Olympics, which were held in London. Unfortunately tennis was dropped from the games after 1924, with its only appearance coming as a demonstration sport at the1968 and 1984 games. In 1988, tennis returned to the Olympic programme as a complete sport in the Seoul Games.

In contrast to contemporary Olympiads, the 1908 Games spanned six months and featured both indoor and outdoor tennis competitions, which were staged on each side of Wimbledon. More countries entered the ‘08 outdoor competition at the former Worple Road venue than had been competing in the Championship just a few weeks earlier.

Major Ritchie of Britain took home the gold medal that year after defeating Otto Froitzheim of Germany in the final. The women's competition was a complete bust due to several withdrawals. To win the title, British woman Dorothea Lambert Chambers defeated country woman Doro Boothby.

Wimbledon Became a Complete Venue for Competition in 1913

The introduction of the women's doubles and mixed doubles championships allowed Wimbledon to offer a complete set of competitions in 1913. However, the suspension of competitions during World War I resulted in a four-year hiatus from 1915 to 1918.

The club endurance through this period was secured by the generous contributions of its members and supporters. Anthony Wilding, engaged in various sports including rugby union for Trinity College, Cambridge, including motorcycling, first-class cricket, but his most notable achievements were in lawn tennis. The New Zealander, after winning four consecutive titles from 1910-13, but defeated in 1914 edition. Additionally, he won four Davis Cups with Australasia and three world singles titles, his first victory being at Wimbledon against the British Isles. He was preparing for the US Championships in America when World War I began. Returning to England, he enlisted in the Royal Marines and tragically died in 1915 on the Western Front.

Wimbledon Hosted a Future King

The Jubilee Championships of 1926, where King George V and Queen Mary awarded commemorative medals to 34 of Wimbledon's surviving champions, was also a royal event because their son, the Duke of York (who would later become King George VI), participated in the men's doubles with his equerry, Wing Commander Louis Greig. Their first-round match was an unusual event, as they faced a duo with a combined age of 110 years.

Arthur Gore, still playing top-level tennis at 58, and his partner, H. Roger Barrett, who would later become Britain's Davis Cup captain at 52, proved that experience prevails, winning in straight sets despite the future king's reputedly hard serve and the younger pair's age advantage. Wing Commander Greig, later Sir Louis Greig, became chairman of the All-England Club in 1937, while King George VI remains the only royal to have ever competed at Wimbledon.

Andy Murray Was the First British Player in 77 Years to Win Wimbledon.

We all know that Andy Murray has won Wimbledon not once, but twice! However, did you know that he was the first Brit to win the tournament in 77 years? 

"A British man wins Wimbledon." This sentence, waited for 77 years, was finally spoken on the seventh day of the seventh month when Andy Murray became the first British champion at Wimbledon since Fred Perry in 1936.

One year after his defeat to Roger Federer in his initial Wimbledon final, Murray returned to the All-England Club's final stage in 2013, determined to triumph over Novak Djokovic. It marked the fourth Grand Slam final encounter between the pair, born just a week apart in May 1987, with Djokovic having won two of the previous three. However, the world No. 1 found himself unable to thwart Murray's destiny.

Leading 6-4, 7-5, 5-4 in the dry and humid atmosphere of Centre Court, the 26-year-old Scot stepped up to serve for the match amidst the thunderous chants of "MURRAY! MURRAY! MURRAY!" resonating from Southwest London to his hometown of Dunblane. In a tense final game, Murray squandered three championship points but seized victory on the fourth attempt as Djokovic's backhand hit the net. Murray's initial euphoria gave way to disbelief as he ascended to his box, filled with his closest supporters. The lengthy anticipation had ended.