Wimbledon is the oldest and most famous tennis tournament in the world. Played in Wimbledon, London, at the turn of July every year, it is the third of four events at the highest category known as the Grand Slam. But why are we talking about it? Because we want to introduce victories related to the Czech Republic, or former Czechoslovakia. Come with us on both an historical and present-day trip.
How it started in England
The history of Wimbledon started at the grass tennis courts of the All England Club in 1877. Still played on grass, English ryegrass at a tournament height of exactly 8 mm, throughout its history the tournament has only failed to be held in the war years between 1915-1919 and 1940-1945, and in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic. This year’s tournament will take place between 28 June and 11 July. The programme includes ladies’ and gentlemen’s singles; ladies’, gentlemen’s and mixed doubles; junior, legend and wheelchair competitions, including quadriplegics.
Czech tennis
Dozens of Czechs, both male and female including Jaroslav Drobný, Jan Kodeš, Ivan Lendl, Tomáš Berdych, Hana Mandlíková, Jana Novotná, Martina Navrátilová, Petra Kvitová, Barbora Strýcová, or Kristýna Plíšková have not only made their names at Wimbledon, but also in other competitions. But only a few have made it to the finals and turned their final chance into victory. And why did we claim so boldly that the Czech Republic is a great tennis power? For a country that only has a population of 10 million, there are many top tennis players. Tennis has had a long history in the Czech Republic and the country has always had excellent players and trainers.
Czech victories on Wimbledon lawn
The tennis past knows many Grand Slam winners. The first one to mention is Martina Navrátilová. The native of Central Bohemian Řevnice won her first Grand Slam tournament in 1978, already representing the United States of America, where she immigrated from the communist Czechoslovakia. It was the start of her famous career, during which she won eighteen singles titles, half of them at these exact London lawn courts. Another ladies’ doubles competitor is Jana Novotná, who comes from the capital of Moravia, Brno. Jana Novotná successfully turn her finals participation into victory on her third attempt in 1998. On the other hand, Petra Kvitová, a native of Moravian Prostějov, took part in the ladies’ singles finals twice and won both times – first in 2011, and then in 2014. There are more Czech players active in the ladies’ doubles, in which Czech tennis players compete almost every year. Last time, in 2018, Barbora Krejčíková and Kateřina Siniaková won, and in 2019, the last tournament before the coronavirus pandemic, Barbora Strýcová, who started playing tennis in West Bohemian Pilsen, where she is from, was victorious with her partner.
