Transcript TENNIS slide show

TENNIS
A Brief History
October 2006
Science in Sports & Exercise
Early Tennis
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Tennis is said to have originated in 13th century French monasteries.
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Tennis – French tenez meaning “play”.
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A sheepskin ball filled with sand, sawdust or wool (non-bouncing) was hit with an
open hand over a rope strung across the monastery courtyard.
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Playing with the hand
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evolved into playing with a glove
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glove with webbing between the fingers
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a solid paddle
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eventually a sort of racquet was developed – a webbed glove with a handle.
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Balls still did not bounce.
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By 1500 or so a wooden racquet frame strung with sheep’s gut was generally used
and balls were cork-cored.
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The game caught on with the royalty and became known as “real” or “royal” tennis
and was called jeu de paume – game of the palm.
Popularity of Tennis
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Royal tennis grew in popularity through the centuries to
the point where both the Pope and King Louis IV
attempted to ban it.
Spread to England early 16th century, and both Henry VII
and Henry VIII were “avid players, promoting the
building of more courts.”
The game’s popularity waned during the 1700’s because
of the French Revolution, but enjoyed a resurgence
following the conflict
In 1850, with the invention of vulcanized rubber, players
began to try the game with the bouncy rubber balls on
outdoor grass courts and a new game was born.
Changing the Game
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Modern tennis is credited to British Army Major
Walter Wingfield.
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patented a portable equipment set, making tennis
more accessible.
Lawn tennis caught on quickly in Great Britain
and the first world championship was played at
Wimbledon in 1877.
1884 Wimbledon launched a women’s
championship.
Tennis Comes to the United States
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Tennis came to the United States around
1874, via a New Yorker, Mary Ewing
Outerbridge, who was introduced to the
game by a friend of Major Wingfield’s.
She helped establish the first US Open
played in Newport RI in 1881-men only.
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Women were allowed in 1887.
Major Tournaments
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Wimbledon, Great Britain
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US Open
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1891 men; 1897 women; French citizens only until
1925 when Tournament evolved into French Open
Australian Open
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1881 men; 1887 women
French Championship
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1877 men; 1884 women
1969
Davis Cup
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1900
Grand Slam
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Four major championships are won in one year
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Wimbledon, French Open, US Open, Australian Open
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American Don Budge was first winner 1838
Most recently Stephi Graf won in 1988
Serena Williams won in 2002 & 2003
Modern Tennis
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Is played on a court of regulated size, in
which two to four players attempt to hit a
ball, specifically designed for the game,
with racquets, also specifically designed
for the game, over a net of regulation
height, placed in the center of the court.
Required Equipment
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Tennis court with net
Tennis racquet
Tennis ball
Desirable Equipment
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Court shoes
Cute little outfit
What they Used to Wear
1800’s
Early 1900’s
1940’s
1920’s
What They Wear Today
Andre Agassi
Serena Williams
Dominik Hrbaty
Venus Williams
The Aim of the Game
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Players stand on opposite sides of a net and use a
stringed racket to hit a ball back and forth to each other.
Each player has a maximum of one bounce after it has
been hit by their opponent to return the ball over the net
and within the boundaries of the court.
Once a player fails to do any of these three things, their
opponent wins a point.
The aim is to win enough points to win a game, enough
games to win a set and enough sets to win a match.
Tennis Scoring
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Tennis has an unusual scoring system.
The first point in a game is called 15 and the next 30. So you'd think
that the next point should be 45 - but it isn't, it's 40.
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And the score of a player who has not won any points is not 'nil' or
'zero', but 'love'.
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Said to have originated from quarters of a clock
said to come from the French word oeuf, which means egg and is
shaped like a zero.
The server's score is always called first by the umpire.
So if Player A is serving to Player B and Player B wins the point, the
score is love-15.
If Player A wins the next point the score is 15-all, and so on
Competition and Fun
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Tennis today is played around the world by
professionals, amateurs, and recreational
enthusiasts.
Championship games were first open only to
male players but eventually opened to women
as well.
First world tennis championship was held in
1877 in Wimbledon, Great Britain. The
Wimbledon Tournament is still played today and
is considered one of the most prestigious
tournaments in tennis.
Influential Players
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The “Four Musketeers” – dominated game in late 1920’s and 30’s. Unseated
current American winners.
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Rod Laver
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Athleticism and fitness
Martina Navratilova
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For his use of topspin
Ivan Lendl
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Jean Borotra
Rene Lacoste (“the Alligator”)
Henri Cochet
Jacques Brugnon
Athleticism and fitness
Won most tournaments 167 singles; 162 doubles
Chris Everett
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125 match winning streak
Two-handed backhand