Professional Documents
Culture Documents
French Open
Roland Garros
[1]
Official web
Surface Sand - odd years (1891–1907) Clay - even years (1891-1907) Clay (1908–present) (Outdoors)
Grand Slam
• Australian Open
• French Open
• Wimbledon
• US Open
The French Open (French: Les Internationaux de France de Roland Garros or Tournoi de Roland-Garros,
IPA: [ʁɔlɑ̃ ɡaʁɔs]) is a major tennis tournament held over two weeks between late May and early June in Paris,
France, at the Stade Roland Garros. It is the second of the Grand Slam tournaments on the annual tennis calendar and
the premier clay court tennis tournament in the world. Roland Garros is the only Grand Slam still held on clay and
ends the spring clay court season.
It is one of the most prestigious events in tennis,[3] and it has the widest worldwide broadcasting and audience of all
regular events in this sport.[4] [5] Because of the slow playing surface and the five-set men's singles matches without
a tiebreak in the final set, the event is widely considered to be the most physically demanding tennis tournament in
the world.[6] [7]
The reigning current champions in singles are Rafael Nadal for the men and Francesca Schiavone for the women at
the 2010 French Open.
French Open 2
History
Officially named in French Les Internationaux de France de
Roland Garros or Tournoi de Roland-Garros (the "French
Internationals of Roland Garros" or "Roland Garros Tournament"
in English), the tournament is often referred to as the "French
Open" and always as "Roland Garros" in French.
A French national tournament began in 1891, that was open only
to tennis players who were members of French clubs. It was
known as the Championnat de France International de Tennis,
which is commonly referred to in English as the French
Championships. The first women's tournament was held in 1897. Suzanne Lenglen Court at Roland Garros.
This 'French club members only' tournament was played until
1924. This tournament had three venues:
Île de Puteaux (all odd years from 1891 to 1907), played on sand laid out on a bed of rubble.
The Racing Club de France (all even years from 1892-1908, then 1910 to 1924), played on clay
For one year, 1909 it was played at the Société Athlétique de la Villa Primrose in Bordeaux, on clay.
Another tournament, the World Hard Court Championships held on Clay courts at Stade Français in Saint Cloud,
which was played from 1912 to 1923 (except the war years), is often considered as the precursor to Roland Garros as
it was open to international competitors. Winners of this tournament included world number #1's such as Tony
Wilding from New Zealand (1913, 1914) and Bill Tilden from the US (1921). In 1924 there was no World Hard
Court Championships due to the tennis being played at the Paris Olympic Games.
In 1925, the French Championships became open to all amateurs Internationally. This tournament was held at the
Stade Francais (site of the previous World Hardcourt Championships) in 1925 & 1927, on clay. In 1926 the Racing
Club de France hosted the event, again on clay. In 1928, the Roland Garros stadium was opened and the event has
been held there ever since.[8] After the Mousquetaires or Philadelphia Four (René Lacoste, Jean Borotra, Henri
Cochet, and Jacques Brugnon) won the Davis Cup on American soil in 1927, the French decided to defend the cup in
1928 at a new tennis stadium at Porte d’Auteuil. The Stade de France had offered the tennis authorities three
hectares of land with the condition that the new stadium must be named after the World War I pilot, Roland Garros.
The new Stade de Roland Garros, and its Center Court, which was named Court Philippe Chatrier in 1988, hosted
that Davis Cup challenge.
From 1945 through 1947, the French Championships were held after Wimbledon, making it the third Grand Slam
event of the year.
In 1968, the French Championships became the first Grand Slam tournament to go open, allowing both amateurs and
professionals to compete.[8]
French Open 3
Since 1981, new prizes have been presented: the Prix Orange (for
the player demonstrating the best sportsmanship and cooperative
attitude with the press), the Prix Citron (for the player with the
strongest character and personality) and the Prix Bourgeon (for the
tennis player revelation of the year).
Another novelty, since 2006 the tournament has begun on a
Sunday, featuring 12 singles matches played on the three main
courts.
Additionally, on the eve of the tournament's opening, the
Court number 2 at the French Open. traditional Benny Berthet exhibition day takes place, where the
profits go to different charity associations.
In March 2007, it was announced that the event will provide equal prize money for both men and women in all
rounds for the first time ever.[9] In 2010, it was announced that the French Open was considering a move away from
Roland Garros as part of a continuing rejuvenation of the tournament.[10]
Surface characteristics
Clay courts slow down the ball and produce a high bounce when compared to grass courts or hard courts. For this
reason, clay courts take away some of the advantages of big serves and serve-and-volleyers, which makes it hard for
serve based players to dominate on the surface. For example, Pete Sampras, a player known for his huge serve, never
won the French Open (nor even advanced to the final) in his entire career. Many players who have won multiple
Grand Slam events have never won the French Open, including John McEnroe, Venus Williams, Stefan Edberg,
Boris Becker, Martina Hingis, Lindsay Davenport, and Maria Sharapova. Andy Roddick (who holds the record for
fastest serve in the history of professional tennis) never advanced past the fourth round.
On the other hand, players whose games are more suited to slower surfaces, such as Björn Borg, Ivan Lendl, Rafael
Nadal, and Mats Wilander, and on the women's side, Justine Henin have found great success at this tournament. In
the open era, the only male players who have won both the French Open and Wimbledon, played on faster grass
courts, are Rod Laver, Jan Kodeš, Björn Borg, Andre Agassi, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer.
Prize money
In 2009, the prize money awarded in the men's and women's singles tournaments was equal and distributed as
follows:[15]
Winner €1,060,000
Finalist €530,000
Semi-finalist €265,000
Quarter-finalist €132,500
Champions
• Men's Singles, winner of the Coupe des Mousquetaires
• Women's Singles, winner of the Coupe Suzanne Lenglen
• Men's Doubles, winners of the Coupe Jacques Brugnon
• Women's Doubles, winners of the Coupe Simone Mathieu
• Mixed Doubles, winners of the Coupe Marcel Bernard
• Singles Finals, records and statistics
The trophies are all made of pure silver with finely etched decorations on their side, each new singles winner gets his
or her name written on the plate holding the trophy.
Winners receive a replica of the won trophy. Pure silver replicas of the trophies are fabricated and engraved for each
winner by the Maison Mellerio, located in the Rue de la Paix, Paris.
Current champions
Rafael Nadal Francesca Schiavone won her Daniel Nestor Nenad Zimonjić was part of the
won his fifth first singles slam, and the first was part of the winning men's doubles team.
French Open, and singles slam title for a person winning men's Zimonjić won his first French
the seventh slam from Italy in women's tennis. doubles team. Open Men's Doubles title, and
of his career. Nestor won his third slam title in that discipline.
second French
Open Men's
Doubles title, and
the sixth slam title
in that discipline.
French Open 5
2010 Men's Singles Rafael Nadal Robin Söderling 6–4, 6–2, 6–4
Records
Record Era Player(s) Num. Years
Winner of most men's singles Before Max Decugis (French 8 1903, 1904, 1907, 1908, 1909, 1912, 1913, 1914
titles 1925: club members only event)
1925-1967: Henri Cochet 4 1926, 1928, 1930, 1932 Note: Also won World Hard Court
Championship in 1922
After 1967: Björn Borg 6 1974, 1975, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1981
Winner of most consecutive Before Max Decugis (French 3 1907, 1908, 1909 and 1912, 1913, 1914
men's singles titles 1925: club members only event)
Winner of most men's doubles Before Max Decugis (French 14 1902, 1903, 1904, 1905, 1906, 1907, 1908, 1909, 1910,
titles 1925: club members only event) 1911, 1912, 1913, 1914, 1920
1925-1967: Roy Emerson 6 1960, 1962 with Neale Fraser; 1961 with Rod Laver; 1963
with Manuel Santana; 1964 with Ken Fletcher; 1965 with
Fred Stolle
After 1967: Paul Haarhuis 3 1995, 1998 with Jacco Eltingh; 2002 with Yevgeny
Yevgeny Kafelnikov Kafelnikov
Leander Paes 1996, 1997 with Daniel Vacek; 2002 with Paul Haarhuis
1999; 2001 with Mahesh Bhupati; 2009 with Lukáš
Dlouhý
Winner of most consecutive Before Max Decugis (French 13 1902, 1903, 1904, 1905, 1906, 1907, 1908, 1909, 1910,
men's doubles titles 1925: club members only event) 1911, 1912, 1913, 1914
After 1967: Gene Mayer 2 1978 with Hank Pfister; 1979 with Sandy Mayer
Yevgeny Kafelnikov & 1996, 1997
Daniel Vacek 2005, 2006
Jonas Björkman &
Max Mirnyi
Winner of most mixed doubles Before Max Decugis (French 7 1904, 1905, 1906, 1908, 1909, 1914 and 1920 with
titles – Men 1925: club members only event) Suzanne Lenglen
Winner of most titles (total: Before Max Decugis 29 1902-1920 (8 singles, 14 doubles, 7 mixed)
singles, doubles, mixed) – men 1925:
Winner of most women's Before Suzanne Lenglen 6 1920, 1921, 1922, 1923, 1925, 1926 Note: Also won
singles titles 1968: World Hard Court Championship in 1914, 1921, 1922 &
1923
After 1967: Chris Evert 7 1974, 1975, 1979, 1980, 1983, 1985, 1986
French Open 7
Winner of most consecutive Before Jeanne Matthey 4 1909, 1910, 1911, 1912
women's singles titles 1968: Suzanne Lenglen 1920, 1921, 1922, 1923
Winner of most women's Before Simone Mathieu 6 1933, 1934 with Elizabeth Ryan; 1936, 1937, 1938 with
doubles titles 1968: Billie Yorke; 1939 with Jadwiga Jędrzejowska
After 1967: / Martina 7 1975 (with Chris Evert); 1982 with Anne Smith; 1984,
Navratilova 1985, 1987, 1988 with Pam Shriver; 1986 with Andrea
Temesvári
Winner of most consecutive Before Françoise Durr 5 1967, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1971
women's doubles titles 1968:
After 1967: Martina Navratilova 5 1984, 1985, 1987, 1988 with Pam Shriver; 1986 with
Gigi Fernández Andrea Temesvári
1991 with Jana Novotná; 1992-95 with Natasha Zvereva
Winner of most mixed doubles Before Suzanne Lenglen 7 1914, 1920 with Max Decugis
titles – women 1968: 1921, 1922, 1923, 1925, 1926 with Jacques Brugnon
After 1967: Françoise Durr 3 1968, 1971, 1973 with Jean-Claude Barclay
Winner of most titles (total: Before Suzanne Lenglen 15 1919-1926 (6 singles, 2 doubles, 7 mixed)
singles, doubles, mixed) – 1968:
women
After 1967: / Martina 11 1974-88 (2 singles, 7 doubles, 2 mixed)
Navratilova
Miscellaneous
See also
• List of French Open Men's Singles champions
• List of French Open Women's Singles champions
• List of French Open Men's Doubles champions
• List of French Open Women's Doubles champions
• List of French Open Mixed Doubles champions
French Open 8
External links
• Official Site [16]
[17]
• (French) Roland Garros on France2
[18]
• (French) Roland Garros on ina.fr : more than 600 hours of audio/visual archives
• Satellite image of the venue (Google Maps) [19]
• Photos of Roland Garros [20]
• French Open - All winners and runners-up. Reference book [21]
• Roland Garros Draws in Rich CSS [22]
Geographical coordinates: 48°50′49.79″N 2°14′57.18″E
References
[1] http:/ / www. rolandgarros. com
[2] "Roland Garros - The 2009 French Open - Official Site by IBM" (http:/ / www. rolandgarros. com). . Retrieved 2009-06-05.
[3] Clarey, Christopher (2001-06-30). "Change Seems Essential to Escape Extinction : Wimbledon: World's Most-Loved Dinosaur" (http:/ /
www. iht. com/ articles/ 2001/ 06/ 30/ a20_16. php). International Herald Tribune. . Retrieved 2007-07-20.
[4] "Day 15 - Press conference with tournament's management" (http:/ / 2007. rolandgarros. com/ en_FR/ news/ interviews/ 2007-06-10/
200706101181479459046. html). rolandgarros.com. 2007-06-10. . Retrieved 2007-08-10.
[5] "Roland Garros: a venue open all year long. Television Coverage" (http:/ / www. fft. fr/ rolandgarros/ default_en. asp?id=2293). ftt.fr. .
Retrieved 2007-08-09.
[6] Clarey, Christopher (2006-05-26). "In a year of change at Roland Garros, the winners may stay the same" (http:/ / www. iht. com/ articles/
2006/ 05/ 26/ news/ preview. php). International Herald Tribune. . Retrieved 2007-08-08.
[7] "French Open - Countdown: Borg's view on RG" (http:/ / eurosport. yahoo. com/ 22052008/ 58/ french-open-countdown-borg-s-view-rg.
html). Eurosport. 2008-05-22. . Retrieved 2008-05-22.
[8] "Roland Garros: a venue open all year long. Past Winners and Draws" (http:/ / www. fft. fr/ rolandgarros/ default_en. asp?id=1575). ftt.fr. .
Retrieved 2007-08-07.
[9] "Roland Garros Awards Equal Pay" (http:/ / www. sonyericssonwtatour. com/ 1/ newsroom/ stories/ ?ContentID=1215). WTA Tour.
2007-03-16. . Retrieved 2007-07-20.
[10] "French Open could move away from Roland Garros in Paris" (http:/ / news. bbc. co. uk/ sport1/ hi/ tennis/ 8580652. stm). 2007-03-16. .
Retrieved 2007-07-20.
[11] Mimram Footbridge. Culture Routes (http:/ / www. culture-routes. lu/ php/ fo_index. php?lng=en& dest=bd_ar_det& id=00000051)
Retrieved 2010-08-18.
[12] The Roland Garros Stadium of the Future. Roland Garros official Web site (http:/ / 2009. rolandgarros. com/ en_FR/ news/ articles/
2009-05-15/ 200905151242378326124. html) Retrieved 2010-08-17.
[13] Martin, John (May 22, 2010). French Officials Consider Relocation Options for the Open. New York Times (http:/ / www. nytimes. com/
2010/ 05/ 23/ sports/ tennis/ 23tennis. html) Retrieved 2010-08-18.
[14] Walker, Randy (June 1, 2010). FRENCH OPEN MAY HAVE TO LEAVE PARIS AND “WATCH TRADITION GROW." World Tennis
Magazine (http:/ / www. worldtennismagazine. com/ archives/ 2398) Retrieved 2010-08-17.
[15] Prize Money (http:/ / www. rolandgarros. com/ en_FR/ about/ prizemoney. html)
[16] http:/ / www. fft. fr/ rolandgarros/ default_en. asp
[17] http:/ / roland-garros. france2. fr/
[18] http:/ / www. ina. fr/ rolandgarros
[19] http:/ / maps. google. com/ maps?f=q& hl=en& q=Paris& ll=48. 846975,2. 247401& spn=0. 003354,0. 010815& t=k& om=0
[20] http:/ / www. paris-photos. org/ roland-garros. php
[21] http:/ / www. grandslamhistory. com/ index. php?menu=winners& act=GetWinnersTGSU& id_tour=2& id_event=1& id_nation=0/
[22] http:/ / prateekrungta. com/ grandslams/ rolandgarros/ 2010
Article Sources and Contributors 9
License
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