The French Open,[a] known originally as the Internationaux de France[2] is an annual tennis tournament created in 1891 and played on outdoor red clay courts at the Stade Roland Garros in Paris, France.[3] The men's singles was the first event contested in 1891.[4] The French Open is played during two weeks in late May, early June, and has been chronologically the second of the four Grand Slam tournaments of the tennis season since 1987. The event was not held from 1915 to 1919 because of World War I, and officially from 1940 to 1945 because of World War II.[5]
The Racing Club de France and and the Stade Français of Paris alternatively held the event, until competition was moved in 1928 to the newly-built Stade Roland Garros. Until 1924, the tournament was reserved to French tennis clubs members, the first edition opened to international players taking place in 1925.[6] From 1941 to 1945, the Vichy regime requisitioned the site and held a Tournoi de France, for French players only, won twice by Bernard Destremau and thrice by Yvon Petra. Those editions are counted out of the tournament's history.[7][8]
The men's singles' rules have undergone several changes since the first edition. The event has always been contested in a knockout format. Records show matches were played at the best-of-three sets format until 1902 or 1903, and at the best-of-five afterwards, except from 1973 to 1975, when early rounds were played at the best-of-three. The lingering death best-of-twelve points tie-break was introduced in 1973 for the first four sets.[9]
The champion receives a miniature replica of the silver-gilt Coupe des Mousquetaires, named after the The Four Musketeers of French tennis; Jean Borotra, Jacques Brugnon, Henri Cochet and René Lacoste.[10] In 2009, the winner received prize money of €1,060,000.[11]
Max Decugis (winner, 1903–1904, 1907–1909, 1912–1914) holds the all-time record for most titles in the men's singles with eight victories, however all his wins came when the tournament was reserved to French tennis club members. With the tournament an international competition, the record for most titles stands at six, and is held by Björn Borg (1974–1975, 1978–1981). The all-time record for most consecutive titles, at four, is co-held by Paul Aymé (1897–1900, all titles within the club members only format), Björn Borg (1978–1981) and Rafael Nadal (2005–2008).[5][9]
Champions
editRegular competition |
Clubs members only event * |
No competition • |
Statistical information
editMultiple champions
editClubs members only event |
Active player + |
Champions by country
editFormer country ¤ |
Country | Amateur Era | Open Era | All-time | First title | Last title |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
France (FRA) | 37 | 1 | 38 | 1892 | 1983 |
Spain (ESP) | 2 | 10 | 12 | 1961 | 2008 |
Australia (AUS) | 9 | 2 | 11 | 1933 | 1969 |
United States (USA) | 4 | 7 | 11 | 1938 | 1999 |
Sweden (SWE) | 1 | 9 | 10 | 1957 | 1988 |
Czechoslovakia (TCH) ¤[f] | 0 | 5 | 5 | 1970 | 1987 |
Brazil (BRA) | 0 | 3 | 3 | 1997 | 2001 |
Germany (GER) | 3 | 0 | 3 | 1934 | 1937 |
Italy (ITA) | 2 | 1 | 3 | 1959 | 1976 |
Argentina (ARG) | 0 | 2 | 2 | 1977 | 2004 |
Egypt (EGY) | 2 | 0 | 2 | 1951 | 1952 |
United Kingdom (UK/GBR)[g] | 2 | 0 | 2 | 1891 | 1935 |
Austria (AUT) | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1995 | 1995 |
Ecuador (ECU) | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1990 | 1990 |
Hungary (HUN) | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1947 | 1947 |
Romania (ROU) | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1973 | 1973 |
Russia (RUS) | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1996 | 1996 |
Switzerland (SUI) | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2009 | 2009 |
Notes
edit- a Known as the French Championships (1891–1967) during the Amateur Era.[4]
- b Each year is linked to an article about that particular event's draw.
- c The tournament was not held from 1915 to 1919 because of World War I.[4]
- d The tournament was officially not held from 1940 to 1945 because of World War II.[4][5]
- e The tournament entered the Open Era with the 1968 edition, allowing professional players to compete alongside amateurs.[5]
- f Czechoslovakia (TCH, 1918–1992), does not include the totals of Czech Republic (CZE, 1992–present) and Slovakia (SVK, 1992–present).
- g One win by a player from the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland (1801–1922), plus one win by a player from the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (1922–present).
References
edit- General
- "Event Guide / History / Past Winners 1891 - 2008". rolandgarros.com. IBM, Fédération Française de Tennis. Retrieved 2009-07-02.
- "Grand Slam Tournaments - French Open" (PDF). usta.com. United States Tennis Association. Retrieved 2009-07-01.
- "List of French Open men's singles champions". ESPN.com. Reuters. 2009-06-07. Retrieved 2009-07-01.
- Specific
- ^ "Superb Soderling Sends Nadal Crashing Out". atpworldtour.com. ATP Tour, Inc. 2009-05-31. Retrieved 2009-08-04.
- ^ "Guide du Tournoi / Histoire". roland-garros.com. IBM, Fédération Française de Tennis. Retrieved 2009-07-07.
- ^ "Tournament profile - Roland Garros". atpworldtour.com. ATP Tour, Inc. Retrieved 2009-07-02.
- ^ a b c d e "Past Winners and Draws". fft.fr. Fédération Française de Tennis. Retrieved 2009-07-02.
- ^ a b c d "Event Guide / History / Past Winners 1891 - 2008". rolandgarros.com. IBM, Fédération Française de Tennis. Retrieved 2009-07-02.
- ^ Lewis, Gabrielle (2002-05-23). "French Open history". BBC Sport. BBC. Retrieved 2009-07-01.
- ^ Lebowitz, Mike (2004-06-03). "French tennis officials: landmark venue housed WWII prisoners". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 2009-07-07.
- ^ "History of the French Open 1928–2001 (1/3)". France 2. 2001. Retrieved 2009-08-04.
- ^ a b "Event Guide / History / Record Breakers". roland-garros.com. IBM, Fédération Française de Tennis. Retrieved 2009-07-07.
- ^ "Merellio dits Meller : The Silverthsmith of Sport". mellerio.fr. Merellio dits Meller. Retrieved 2009-06-24.
- ^ "Event Guide / Prize Money". rolandgarros.com. IBM, Fédération Française de Tennis. Retrieved 2009-07-04.
- ^ Amalfi, Alberto (2009-05-15). "Roof Coming To Roland Garros". tennisweek.com. Tennis Week. Retrieved 2009-08-04.
- ^ "Head to head – Roger Federer/Rafael Nadal". atpworldtour.com. ATP Tour, Inc. Retrieved 2009-08-04.
- ^ "Federer Clinches Roland Garros Title To Seal Career Slam". atpworldtour.com. ATP Tour, Inc. 2009-06-07. Retrieved 2009-08-04.
External links
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