The history of the emergence of tennis. A Brief History of Tennis. Development of tennis in Russia
Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation
NOVOSIBIRSK STATE TECHNICAL UNIVERSITY
abstract
On the topic: The main stages
development of tennis in Russia (USSR)
Performed:
Second year student
FBE-72 groups
Svechnikova Yu.V.
Teacher
Zatolokina Galina Vasilievna
Novosibirsk, 2009
History of tennis ………………………………………………………… 3
Development of tennis in Russia ……………………………… .......... 5
The main stages of the development of tennis in Russia (USSR) …………………… 6
Tennis Moscow …………………………………………………………… ... 8
1. History of tennis
If you do not take into account the games of the ancient Greeks and Romans, in which the ball was hit by a hand or a wooden stick, then the first mentions of a game similar to tennis can be found in the 12th-13th centuries in Italy. The game was called "jidoko", and the ball was fought back with a mitten, a wooden shield or a leather belt on the hand. In the XIV century, the French nobility was already fond of the so-called "palm game" ("jue de pom"), which had a great influence on the development of modern tennis. It was played in halls and on open-air venues. Over time, they began to hit the ball with rackets. The game was also recognized by the British, who gave it the name "real tennis".
The leather balls that were played in those days were stuffed with sawdust, rags, grass, etc. They could only bounce off a hard surface. With the advent of rubber balls, playing on the grass became possible. In England in 1874, thanks to Major W. Wingfield, the so-called lawn tennis (tennis on the grass) appeared. Lawn tennis, and today just tennis, quickly spread throughout Europe and other continents. It is played by millions of people of all ages.
The number of so-called open tournaments is growing every year, and today both professionals and amateurs with the necessary qualifications can participate in any of them. Every year, the best players are judged by the results of the games in the "Grand Prix" (a number of tournaments organized by the International Tennis Federation), as well as on the ATP scale (Association of Professional Tennis Players).
In the Czech Republic, they began to play tennis on the grass very early - already in the second half of the 70s of the last century (the first tournament was held here in 1885). But at that time, tennis was available only to the nobility, and later, until the Second World War, it was practiced by the propertied strata of the population.
Over the years, the concept of playing tennis and the technique of striking have changed. The first lawn tennis players played only from the back row, giving the ball mainly bottom spin or by combining bottom spin with side spin. This was how they played until the beginning of the First World War. In the 1920s, the game began to be played all over the court. The players moved to the net as soon as possible and tried to end the rally with a volley kick or laugh, mostly flat. The famous American W. Tilden was a typical representative of such a game.
In the second half of the 30s, the importance of playing at the net increased. Here the Americans D. Budge and R. Riggs achieved the greatest success. Immediately after filing or receiving it, they went to the net and tried to strike a victorious blow over their heads or from the summer.
At the present time, the game is successful both throughout the court and at the net. On earthen courts, the most optimal play is throughout the court, on grassy and smooth artificial surfaces - at the net.
In the 70s, some world-class tennis players began to achieve success with kicks from the back line, mainly with the top and very strong backspin.
At the same time, they were guided by a long exchange of balls, ending, rather, with an opponent's mistake or with an accurate dribbling blow than going to the net. Will this style of play become dominant or other accepted methods will be more successful, time will tell.
I must say that with the development of the game itself, the conditions in which it was carried out also changed: the shape and size of the playing field, racket, ball, players' clothing. Pay attention, for example, to the shape and size of the tennis court in 1874 (the year of the origin of lawn tennis - Fig. 2), 1877 (the first year of Wimbledon - Fig. 3) and now (Fig. 4); the shape and size of the racket of 1874 and 1898 and modern (Fig. 1); clothes of the last century (Fig. 5), 20s of the XX century (Fig. 6) and today's (Fig. 7) (only in the early 30s, male players were allowed to play in short trousers, and women - in short skirts).
2. Development of tennis in Russia
Tennis began to develop in Russia at the end of the 19th century. In St. Petersburg, the first tennis club was organized in Lakhta, which was named "Lawn tennis". At the beginning of the 20th century, the first tennis tournaments in Russia were held, in Moscow in 1901, in St. Petersburg in 1903 (the Open Championship of St. Petersburg was the first international tournament in Russia). By 1914, there were already 50 tennis clubs in the country.
In 1920, a tennis player from Russia, Arthur McPherson, and later Anna Dmitrieva, the first of the women, took part in the Wimbledon tournament for the first time.
Among the most famous tennis players in the history of Soviet Russia, it is necessary to note Evgeny Kudryavtsev (union champion), Nina Teplyakova (the first racket of the country), Olga Morozova (was the 4th racket in the world), Alexander Metreveli (the first included in the ten strongest tennis players in the world), Alexander Chesnokov (included in the top ten, the first Russian to become a professional).
In 1956, the USSR Tennis Federation was founded, becoming a member of the International Tennis Federation. In 1989 it was transformed into the All-Russian Tennis Federation, which organized international tournaments. Since the 1960s, the USSR has been participating in the Davis Cup and the Federation Cup.
In the 1990s, the history of tennis in Russia takes on a new meaning. Evgeny Kafelnikov wins the Grand Slam tournaments and becomes the first racket of the world in 1999. Anastasia Myskina was the first in the history of women's tennis in Russia to win the Grand Slam tournament - Roland Garros. Now both in the men's and women's rounds, our tennis players occupy the top lines in the ranking. There are more Russian tennis players in the top twenty than tennis players from any other country.
3. The main stages of the development of tennis in Russia (USSR)
The first stage (1878-1917)
1888 - Creation of the first club in Russia - Lakhtinsky lawn tennis club
1890 - The first book on tennis was published (by M. Volkov)
1901 - First Moscow Championship
1903 - The first open championship in St. Petersburg (at the same time the first international tournament in Russia). First participation Russian tennis players in competitions abroad (Stockholm).
1907 - First All-Russian Lawn Tennis Competition (Russian Championship)
1908 - Establishment of the All-Russian Union of Lawn Tennis Clubs (VSLTK)
1909 - Publication of the first VSLTK Yearbook
1913 - Publication of the first issue of Lawn Tennis magazine
1912 - The first participation of Russian tennis players in the Olympic Games (Stockholm)
1913 - Entry of the WSLTK into the International Lawn Tennis Union
1913-14 - The first international matches of the Russian national team - with the teams of England (1913) and France (1914)
Second stage (1918-92)
1918 - First after Civil war Moscow championship
1920 - First match Moscow - Petrograd
1920 - Debut of the Russian tennis player (A. McPherson) at Wimbledon
1924-92 - Participation of Russian tennis players in many international competitions, including the ATP and WTA rounds (since 1990)
1927 - The first championship of the RSFSR
1928 - All-Union Spartakiad
1924-91 - Participation of Russian tennis players in the USSR championships
1956-91 - Participation of Russian tennis players in the Spartakiads of the peoples of the USSR
1959 - Creation of the RSFSR Tennis Federation
1962 - Debut in the Davis Cup
1968 - Debut in the Federation Cup
1989 - Transformation of the Tennis Federation of the RSFSR into the All-Russian Tennis Association (VTA)
1989 - The first WITA tournament in the USSR-Russia
1990 - The first ATP-Tour tournament in the USSR - Russia (Kremlin Cup)
Third stage (since 1993)
1993 - BTA entered the ITF and ETA as the successor of the USSR and CIS Tennis Federations
1995 - The first ATP-Tour tournament in St. Petersburg - "St. Petersburg Open"
4. Tennis Moscow
Moscow began playing tennis in the second half of the 19th century. In 1878, a decree was proclaimed on the development of this sport in Russia. Enthusiasts from Moscow, St. Petersburg, Riga and Kharkov have achieved the official adoption of tennis. It is noteworthy that this voluntary committee was organized not by an athlete, but by the writer and historian Dmitry Solovyov. Moscow responded vividly to the manifesto on the development of tennis. History claims that this sport was warmly supported by members of Leo Tolstoy's family.
From the very beginning, an aristocratic Moscow played tennis. The game has become a habit of people of princely and county origin, officers, merchants, and factory owners. Moscow and St. Petersburg have become centers for the development and cultivation of tennis clubs - a century after the official manifesto on tennis, there were about a dozen such establishments. These were respected and even prestigious associations, where, as usual, after the game, issues of a national scale were often resolved. With the advent of the Soviet era, tennis became a general game. Sports Moscow began to take part in world-class tennis competitions. The Wimbledon tournament became available to domestic athletes in 1958, the Davis Cup competition in 1962. As for the first own tennis championship, it was organized in Moscow in 1901. St. Petersburg joined Moscow two years later. Then the northern capital expanded the scale of the tournament to an all-Russian one, and domestic tennis masters were sent to a foreign championship - to Sweden.
The year 1918 is significant for the history of tennis - it was this championship that took place for the first time after the Civil War. Two years later, tennis united the athletes of Moscow and Petrograd; it was then that the Russian tennis player went to Wimbledon for the first time. Subsequently, many international competitions were organized, the All-Union Spartakiad. In addition, according to Soviet sports policy, tennis competitions were held in Moscow more than once between many cities of the USSR. Returning to the debut in the Davis Cup, it should be noted that, despite all the efforts, it was won only back in 2002. It took half a century to win the Wimbledon tournament - in 2004, a Russian tennis player won in Great Britain.
N The beginning of the 19th century in the history of tennis was marked by the publication in 1800 of the book by Pierre Barcelona ( Pierre barcellon) "Principles and rules of tennis" ( Rules and Principles of Tennis) published in France. She was very popular throughout Europe. And in 1822, the first book on tennis by the English author Robert Lukin was published ( Robert lukin) - "Treatise on tennis, a member of the tennis club" ( A Treatise on Tennis, by a Member of the Tennis Club), which also received great fame ( author's note Lukin was the secretary of London's Hampton Court Club on James Street, built in 1675, and by 1820 was the only public court in London). The leitmotif in the books is the juxtaposition of tennis with its main competitor, cricket. The author drew attention to the fact that the main advantages of tennis are physical activity, tactical thinking, playing the game and positive emotionality.
Of the 22 participants who performed at Wimbledon ( Wimbledon Championships), the best was 27-year-old Spencer Gore ( Spencer gore), who won the final of William Marshall ( William marshall) with a score of 6: 1; 6: 2; 6: 4. The match was postponed several times and took place only on July 19. Started at 4.30 pm and lasted only 48 minutes. For the victory, Gore received a reward of 12 guineas (about $ 22), and Marshall - 7 guineas. The final match was watched by about 200 spectators who paid a shilling. Third place went to Charles Gilbert Heathcote, the younger brother of John Moyer Heathcote. His reward was 3 guineas. The statistics of the first Wimbledon are as follows: played 21 matches, 70 sets; in 601 games, 376 servers won and 225 games were won by host players.
At the end of the tournament, Spencer Gore, when asked by journalists to comment on the prospects for lawn tennis, said: " The lack of variety will prevent lawn tennis in its current form from taking its rightful place among other great games ... In all likelihood, the monotony of the game will stifle it" (approx. author. - Gore apparently compared tennis with football and croquet, where he was a good player). Fortunately, the skeptical predictions of the first champion did not come true, but in fairness, it should be noted that the tactics of most tennis players of that time were based on a long and monotonous hitting the ball from the back line, although Gore himself used an attacking style of play with constant exits to the net. The following year, the first champion was unable to defend his title and lost to Patrick Francis Hadow ( Patrick francis hadow) 5: 7; 1: 6; 7: 9. Interestingly, Patrick lived and worked in Ceylon, rarely played tennis, and came to London on vacation. At the tournament, he mostly hit the balls with candles, since he did not know how to play differently, and at the end of the tournament he was very surprised that this blow turned out to be so inconvenient for the opponents. After an unexpected triumph, Hadow did not participate in any of the tournaments and appeared at Wimbledon only in 1926, when he was invited by the organizers on the occasion of the 50th anniversary.
The experiment of the organizers of the tournament turned out to be successful and almost immediately after the tournament the club was renamed into the "All England Croquet and Lawn Tennis Club" ( All England Croquet and Lawn Tennis Club). The activity of the club was retrained precisely for lawn tennis, and in 1882 the word "croquet" was excluded from the name, since all croquet courts were converted into tennis courts. And yet in 1889, for sentimental reasons, "cricket" was again included in the name, albeit after "lawn tennis" ( All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club).
(Author's note But whether “Wimbledon-1877” was the first official tournament, as all historical sources claim, I had a doubt. Look at the poster from 1876 that features the tournament winner Charles Winterburn ( Charles winterburn). This is the first argument. The second is as follows: in 1926. the press gave wide coverage of the 50th anniversary of the Wimbledon tournament and the presidency of the Queen Mary's jubilee ceremony. And in 1977. celebrated the 100th anniversary of Wimbledon. Here's a discrepancy. Therefore, it is up to you to take my doubts or not.).
As for the championship cup, in accordance with the regulations, it was a challenge, but the tennis player, who won three Wimbledon winners, was awarded the championship trophy forever. In 1883, William Renshaw ( William renshaw). In this connection, in 1884 the Challenge Cup was established as a champion prize, but in 1886 it also remained with William Renshaw. The next goblet, measuring 45.7 x 19 cm, was made of gilded silver and cost the founders 100 guineas. The organizers of the tournament decided not to shell out for the prizes anymore and changed their status - only "rolling". The inscription was engraved on the goblet: " All England Lawn Tennis Club. World Cup Singles Challenge Trophy"(The All England Lawn Tennis Club. Single Handed Championship of the World) ( author's note In the Resolution of the Tournament Committee on May 17, 1887. it was indicated that the winner must return the prize to the organizers by July 1 of the next year. If a foreigner wins, he, when leaving the UK, is obliged to leave it for safekeeping in one of the London banks or in another place in agreement with the Committee. In 1968. with the beginning of the "Open Era" a new cup was ordered).
At the first Wimbledon, the serve was carried out from below, but Wimbledon-1878 went down in history by the fact that it was first served from above ( approximately the way it is done now). Arthur Thomas Myers ( Arthur thomas myers) (1851-1894), which reached the quarterfinals.
Women's Wimbledon first started in 1884 and ran from July 5th to 19th. Out of 13 participants, Mod Watson became the winner, beating in the final with a score of 6: 8; 6: 3; 6: 3 his older sister Lillian Watson ( Lillian watson). As a prize, Maud received a silver flower basket worth 20 guineas, and her sister received a silver hairbrush worth 10 guineas ( author's note - The "Venus Rosewater Dish" currently existing as a challenge prize has been awarded to the champions since 1886. Dish at painted with mythological drawings and has a diameter of 18.75 inches (about 48 cm)).
In this championship, the men's doubles category was also added, in which brothers William and Ernest Renshaw became the best ( approx. author. ‒ Mixed has been carried out since 1913.). This year was marked as the first in which foreigners performed in singles - three representatives of the United States.
Wimbledon champion in 1893 and 1894, Joshua Pirn, played under a codename because he feared that tennis fame would damage his medical practice.
N and in England two years later the tournament in Cheltenham was added to the Wimbledon tournament (October 6-11, 1879). It was carried out on a concrete surface. Winner - William Renshaw.
A month after the first Wimbledon, Scotland held its championship in a resort town Saint Andrews. I won it James Patten McDougall(James patten macdougall) .
At Oxford University, a tennis club was opened in 1879.
Since 1886, the Kent Championships have been held in Beckenham. In the final, the Englishman Herbert Chipp ( Herbert chipp) defeated compatriot Edward J. Awori ( Edward J. Avory) with a score of 6: 4; 3: 6; 6: 3; 2: 6; 6: 3. Women joined in 1888. The final also included representatives of foggy Albion: May Jax ( May jacks) versus Edith Gurney ( Edith gurney) (1:6; 6:3; 6:0).
NS about the example of England, its western neighbor Ireland spent with September 26-30, 1878 on grass courts " County Limerick Cricket Club»In County Limerick his first tournament - "Championship of the South of Ireland "... The winner of a hundred Irishman Vere Thomas Saint-Leger Gould ( Vere thomas saint leger goold).
A n Ireland held its first national championship on June 6, 1879 on the courts " Fitzwilliam Lawn Tennis Club»Dublin. This is the first tournament in tennis history to feature men's, women's, men's doubles and mixed categories. The triumphant men were Ver Saint Léger Gould (Vere St. Leger goold), in women, 14-year-old May Langrish ( May langrishe). Contemporaries believed that at that time, in terms of the level of play of the participants, the Irish Championships were higher than the Wimbledon tournaments.
And the first Irish tennis club " Lansdowne"Was founded in 1875 by Henry Dunlop ( Henry dunlop). In 1880 it was renamed the All-Ireland Croquet and Lawn Tennis Club ( All Ireland Lawn Tennis Club) (author's note At that time, Ireland was part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland).
Have Els held his first tournament in 1885 at Penarth, where 8 players took part, of which the Englishman Frederick Hooper Aldrich-Blake ( Frederick Hooper Aldrich-Blake).
V January 1888, the Lawn Tennis Association ( LTA). Its first president was William Renshaw ( William renshaw) - champion of Wimbledon in 1881-86 and 1889, who held this post until his death in 1904. Interestingly, in the Wimbledon finals in 1882-83 and 1889, he played with his twin brother Ernst ( Ernest renshaw). Together they were victors at Wimbledon in 1884-86 and 1888-89.
One of the first steps taken by LTA was the adjustment of 43 rules and their publication, the vast majority, of which have not changed to this day. LTA has developed regulations for the conduct of tournaments, both within clubs and in the United Kingdom.
WITH The oldest professional performances (for which the participants received money) are the meetings between the Irishman George Kerr ( George Kerr) and American Tom Pettitt ( Tom pettittt), held in Dublin in 1889 and 1890. In the first year, the Irishman won 3 matches out of 4, and the next year he won all 3 under the terms of the contract.
V aristocratic English Lawn tennis has become an integral part of outdoor entertainment, usually held on Sundays. Before the games, tables were set up next to the courts, at which those present drank tea and had small talk. In the chronicle of English history, you can find a record of Queen Victoria's admonition to her daughter Princess Marie Louise: "... Of course, try to learn how to play this new game - lawn tennis, my dear, but remember that nothing frivolous should be worn on Sundays.". In those days, moral and ethical standards were strict. For example, on the territory of the All England Cricket and Lawn Tennis Club, gentlemen were instructively instructed" not playing in shirts with short or rolled up sleeves in front of a lady". But the champion of Wimbledon in 1905, American May Sutton ( May sutton) during one of the matches caused a storm of indignation from the audience when she unbuttoned the sleeves of a tennis dress and tucked them up.
Thanks to the departure of the British to the resorts of Europe and to the overseas territories of the British Empire, lawn tennis quickly spread throughout the world.
EUROPE
WITH 1878 the first french lawn tennis clubs in the resort towns of Dinard (Atlantic coast, north-west of France), Le Havre (coast of the Pas-de-Calais, northern France), Cannes (Cote d'Azur, southern France) (1881), Biarritz (Atlantic Pyrenees) , Nice (Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, Mediterranean, southeast France)(1890).
In 1880, the first clay courts appeared. Tennis owes this innovation to the British twin brothers William and Ernest Renshaw, who opened a lawn tennis club in Cannes. But, very quickly, they noticed that due to the local climate, the grass wears out quickly. And then they had the idea to cover the court with fine crumbs obtained by grinding fired clay pots. It should be noted that the brothers from 1881 for 10 years dominated the courts, both in their homeland, as in European cities.
The first tennis club appeared in Paris in 1882 " Racing Club de France", And next year another one -" Stade francais". In 1886, 10 clay courts were built for the club “ l "île de Puteaux ».
The pioneer in organizing the tennis competition was the port city of Boulogne-sur-Mer (in the north of France), on the clay courts of which 5 players took part from September 9 to 13, 1888, all from Great Britain. Defeated Edgar John Chippendale ( Edgar john chippendale).
Since 1890, two Parisian sports clubs « Racing Club de France " and " l "île de Puteaux", With the largest number of courts and stands for spectators have become the main bases for tournaments, including those open to foreigners. In 1900, the Olympic tournament was also held on the courts of these clubs.
In the same year, the Union of French Athletics Societies ( USFSA), which at that time was a united sports federation, includes law tennis in its composition and publishes its rules. However, nationalistically, the French press began a sharply critical campaign against the game of English origin, demanding a ban on lawn tennis in France. And only the intervention of the Minister of Education Jules Ferry ( Jules ferry), who is also responsible for the development of sports, has made it possible to end the persecution of lawn tennis in France ( author's note - The French Lawn Tennis Federation was founded in 1920.).
The first French men's championship was held in June 1891 on grass courts " Racing Club de France". It attracted neither spectators nor participants. Only 5 players contested the championship title. And although the championship was held only for members of French clubs, the first winner was the Englishman H. Briggs ( H. Briggs), who lived in Paris. In the final, he outplayed the Frenchman P. Bejneret ( P. Baigneres) with a score of 6: 3; 6: 4.
For women USFSA began to hold the championship since 1897, in the final of which Françoise Masson ( Francoise masson) won against P. Gero ( P. Girod) with a score of 6: 3; 6: 1.
By the mid-90s of the XIX century, under the influence of British tourists, the owners of hotels and boarding houses began to actively build courts in recreation areas. This gave impetus to the rapid popularization of tennis among the French.
In 1895, the Parisian tennis club " Tennis Club de Paris»Built a hall with two wooden (oak) courts. These were the first indoor lawn tennis courts in France. A professional tournament (in a round robin system) of 3 participants was held at them in 1898, who divided the places in the following order: an Englishman who moved to live in France, Thomas Burke ( Thomas burke), Irishman George Kerr ( George Kerr) and the Englishman Tom Fleming ( Tom fleming). The following professional performances took place in 1900 during the World Exhibition of Paris on clay courts. The best was Burke, who defeated Kerr and the Englishman Charles Chirons ( Charles hierons) (author's note Thomas Burke was the coach of the 2-time Wimbledon Champion 1893-94. single and double in pairs - Irishman Joshua Pim).
WITH the currently popular tournament " Monte-Cario Masters"Was first held on April 23-29, 1896 ( author's note - In reality, the tournament takes place in a small French resort town Roquebrune-Cap-Martin, bordering the Principality of Monaco, and the tournament organizers rent land for courts and for administrative and sports facilities ). In the final, Englishman George Whiteside Hillard ( George whiteside hillyard) outplayed the German Count Victor Eugene Voss-Chenot ( Victor Eugen Voss-Schönau) with a score of 6: 3; 6: 2; 6: 3. The following year, Englishman Reginald Doherty ( Reginald doherty) in the final was stronger than his compatriot Conway W. Blackwood Prince ( Conway W. Blackwood Price) 6:1; 6:2; 6:1 (author's note - The Monaco Lawn Tennis Federation was founded on 05.21.1927, and the Monte-Carlo Country Club in 1928.).
NS First private tennis club in Of Italy in the resort of Bordighera celebrates its birth since 1878 ( thanks to the English lord who came to rest). And the first Italian club was founded in 1880 in Turin by Count Henry Sigal ( Enrico di cigala). A tennis club appeared in the capital in 1890. The first national championship was held in 1895 by the Italian Lawn Tennis Association, established on April 16, 1894 in Rome. Count Gino de Martino ( Gino de martino), he also won the first championship. However, in 1898 the activities of the association ceased ( recreated in 1910.).
V Germany the first German club LTC Rot Wei"Appeared in 1881 at the famous resort of Baden-Baden, although five years earlier in 1876 by the Englishman Robert Anstrater ( Robert anstruther) the English club was founded in the resort of Bad Homburg, on the grass courts of which the first tournament was organized in the same year ( a year before the first Wimbledon). In 1892, the first international tournament took place in Badan-Baden.
The first men's tournament in Berlin took place in 1890, women began to compete in this tournament since 1896, the winner was Clara von de Schulenburg ( Clara von der schulenburg).
In August 1891 in Hamburg the first tournament was held on clay courts. It was attended by 19 Germans and Austrians and one American William Howard ( William howard), who won it. In 1893, three tournaments were held in it at once: in May, "Hamburg Spring" ( Hamburg spring), and in August one by one "International Championship of Germany" ( German International Championships ) and traditional - Hamburg.
And in 1896, the women's championship started, and immediately open to foreigners. The men's tournament became open the following year. It is noteworthy that the British George Gilliard ( George hillyard) and his wife Blanche ( Blanche) (6-time Wimbledon Singles Champion). This is the only time in tennis history that a married couple have won singles championship titles in the same tournament and in the same year. In 1897, the first two lawn tennis clubs appeared in Berlin (one of them"Rot-Weiss") ( author's note - The German Lawn Tennis Federation was founded on May 19, 1902. in Berlin, bringing together 22 clubs with 2,500 members).
WITH 1877 in Austria British players began to come and give demonstration performances, which contributed to the popularization of this sport in the country. Tournaments have been held since 1884 at the initiative of the same British. The official Austrian International Championship in 1894 (28-30.09) gathered 7 participants. The victory was celebrated by the Briton and the interesting surname Gandon ( H.W. Gandon), who lived in Austria ( author's note - The Austrian Lawn Tennis Association was founded in 1903.)
V Berne - the capital Switzerland the first tennis club was founded in 1889. The following year, a stadium with tennis courts, favored by members of the diplomatic corps, opened in Schwellenmattel.
The Swiss Lawn Tennis Association was founded on June 28, 1896 in Bern, uniting 10 clubs. NS The first tournament on Swiss soil called "Chateau D" Oex "took place in 1897 in the ski resort Chateau d" E. It brought together 24 participants from 10 countries who contested the title from 9 to 13 September. Triumphant - Englishman Robert Baldwin Hugh ( Robert baldwin hough). The following year, the Swiss International Championship was added to this tournament, which took place in the same city from 22 to 28 August. The winner is the same.
NS first tennis clubs in Portugal founded in 1889(author's note - The Portuguese Lawn Tennis Federation was founded on March 16, 1925.).
WITH The oldest club in The Netherlands is located in Harlem and was founded in 1885. The first tournament was organized by the Hague club "Den Haag" on August 6-10, 1894. 32 tennis players took part. Briton S.Kh. Hughes ( S.H. Hughes). And the first National Championship was held from 24 to 30 August 1898, also in The Hague. It was won by the eminent Irishman Joshua Francis Pym ( Joshua Francis Pim), who before that became the champion of Wimbledon in 1893, 1894 in singles and in 1890, 1893 in doubles. Royal Netherlands Lawn Tennis Association ( KNLTB) was founded in Amsterdam on June 5, 1899.
V 1890 the first tennis club was established in Belgium, and in 1893, still existing - "Royal Leopold Club" ( in honor of King Leopold II). In 1896, a championship was held on indoor courts. Winner - Belgian Marcel Nagelmekers ( Marcel Nagelmaekers) (author's note - The Belgian Lawn Tennis League was founded on 22.03.1902 in Brussels. The first president is Armand Solvay. United 12 clubs. In 1914. in the name "league" was replaced by "federation", and in 1931. added "Royal" in front).
NS first club in Czech Republic appeared in 1893 in its capital, on the clay courts of which the first championship was held the following year, which was won by A. Harden ( A. Harden). In 1894, an open tournament was held in Prague for the first time, in the final of which the British H.W. Gandon of the German H. Voss ( H. Voss) with a score of 6: 0; 6: 1; 6: 3 ( author's note - The Czech Tennis Association was founded on 17.05.1990. after the separation of Czechoslovakia).
V Swedenthe first court was equipped by the British in the Ryfors parish ( Ryfors ) in 1879 ( not preserved). Tennis was widely developed thanks to the initiative of the crown prince Gustav (Gustaf), who fell in love with the game, staying in 1879 for four months in England and Scotland. He returned to his homeland with a tennis set and in 1881, on his instructions, a court was built in the summer residence of Tullgarn. He also became the founder of the first tennis club. Crown Prince Lawn Tennis Club "In 1896, which after the coronation (1907) of Gustav V changed its name to" Royal Lawn Tennis Club »(Royal Lawn Tennis Club).
The first tennis competition took place in 1900 on indoor courts (wood flooring) in Stockholm under the name "Swedish International Covered Courts Championships". From May 7, 10 participants fought for the victory for 7 days, half of them were Swedes. In the final, Englishman John Mason Flavell ( John mason flavelle) with a score of 7: 5; 6: 2; 6: 4 defeated the “owner of the courts” Karl Gunnar Setervall ( Carl gunnar setterwall).
By the beginning of the 20th century, there were 10 tennis clubs in the country ( author's note - The Swedish Lawn Tennis Federation was founded in 1906.).
V Hungary she held her first tournament in 1877 in Balaton, where Princess Stephanie of Belgium won. In 1890in the famous resort of Balatonfured on the basis of the local yacht club "Stefania Yacht Club"tennis fans was initiated unofficial national championship. The winner was Princess Alisa Szechenyi (Aliz Szechenyi). The first national championship was held on June 16, 1894 in the same place. Men and women competed together in the tournament. This was the first tournament female-male confrontation. And again, the representative of the noble family, the Austrian Countess Pauline von Palffy (Paulina von Palffy). The following year, men and women were already separated. In 1899 the tournament "moved" to Budapest, where the first courts were built in 1881.
V Poland the development of tennis began in the early 90s of the XIX century. The first tournament was held on Warsaw courts in 1896, before which the rules of tennis were first published in Polish ( author's note - The Polish Lawn Tennis Association was established on 25.03.1922. in Poznan. First President Zdzislaw Schulz).
G since 1896 is considered the year of birth Bulgarian tennis in connection with the opening of the "Diplomatic Tennis Club" in Sofia ( author's note - The Bulgarian Lawn Tennis Federation was founded in 1930.).
AND spania like many other countries, the birth of tennis should be grateful to the British. It was the workers of the Australian-British company "Rio Tinto Limited" who built the first court in Onuba (now Huelva) in 1886. In the same place, in 1889, the first Real Club Recreativo de Tenis was founded. The status "Royal" received thanks to the membership of the Spanish king Alfonso XIII. In Barcelona, the lawn tennis club was established in 1899 ( was an affiliate of the UK Lawn Tennis Association). In 1904, the first national championship was held on the courts of this club, in which foreigners also took part ( author's note - The Spanish Lawn Tennis Association was founded on 11.11.1909. Since 1935. – Royal Spanish Tennis Federation).
D it the birth of tennis in Of Russia (at the suggestion of the professor and honored trainer of the USSR S.P. Belitz-Geyman it is considered to be August 28, 1878, when the "Manifesto on the comprehensive development of lawn tennis in Russia" was adopted at the St. Petersburg "Tennis Fair". Although there is no confirmed documentary evidence of this event. At the same time, in the biographical materials of the Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich ( ed. 2006-2009.) there is an entry in his diary dated May 31, 1875, in which he mentions a joint training with brothers in tennis on the grass. And the famous tennis historian Boris Fomenko claims that this day is July 12, 1875.
In the late 1870s, lawn tennis began to be practiced by foreigners living in Russia. They built courts at their dachas and country estates. The names of some of them are known: the Englishman D.E. Epsworth and the Russianized Englishman Dmitry Gibson. There are also known facts of playing tennis in the English and German colonies ( places of compact residence) on the territory of the Russian Empire.
In 1882, Niva magazine # 19 published an article "The English game of ball in the meadow", which outlined the rules of law tennis and the requirements for the players' equipment. In 1890, the first practical textbook on lawn tennis was published, the author of which was M. Volkov. The next printed edition was a brochure by E. Dementyev, published in 1897. Since April 1898, the sports magazine "Samokat" in its three issues outlined the "Laws of Lawn Tennis" edited by Ivelsky.
The first club was founded in 1888 on the outskirts of St. Petersburg - "Lakhtinsky lawn tennis club". Lev Weidenbrück was elected its chairman.
V Ukraine tennis appeared thanks to English merchants who organized a tennis club in Odessa in 1890. Under the influence of Austria-Hungary and Poland in 1890, tennis became widespread in Galicia ( territories of modern Lviv, Ivano-Frankivsk and Ternopil regions). The oldest club "Lviv club of laun-tenisu" was organized by the sports society "Lizhvyarske t ovaristvo" in late XIX century and became a leader in the development of the tennis movement throughout the region.
WITH 1899, the British Lawn Tennis Association began to conduct European Championships among men. The first championship took place on clay courts in Bad Homburg (Germany). 43 players participated, with 4 from the USA. In the final, Irishman Harold Mahoney ( Harold mahony) was stronger than the Englishman Reginald Doherty ( Reginald doherty). On account of the Irishman victories at Wimbledon - 1896, silver at the 1900 Olympics in singles and mixed categories, bronze in doubles. Reggie Doherty became Wimbledon Champion four times (1897-1900) and won gold medals at the 1900 Olympics in doubles and mixed. The following year, the European Championship was held on clay courts in Ostend (Belgium). Englishman Josiah Ritchie ( Josiah ritchie) in the final he outplayed his compatriot Charles Dixon ( Charles dixon) with a score of 6: 4; 7: 5; 6: 1 ( author's note - The European Tennis Association was founded in 1975 with headquarters in Basel (Switzerland). In 1978. renamed to "Tennis Europe").
AMERICA
V USA American Mary Ewing Outbridge ( Mary ewing outerbrige), which interested her during her vacation in Bermuda ( overseas territory of Great Britain, 900 km from the USA) in March 1874. Her older brother Eugene ( A. Eugenius Outerbridge), as director of the Staten Island Cricket and Baseball Club ( Staten Island Cricket and Baseball Club) in New York, made it possible to equip courts on the territory of the club, which opened on March 24, 1974. The game was named "court tennis" ( court tennis) (author's note In 1885. the club moved to Sailors Snug Harbor - cultural center of new york ).
On September 1, 1880, the club held an open tournament "For the Championship of America", which attracted a large number of spectators. Won the Englishman O.E. Woodhouse ( O.E Woodhouse), who was at that time in New York ( at Wimbledon in the same year he reached the semifinals).
In 1876, courts were built in New Orleans (Louisiana), Boston and Nahanta (Massachusetts), and the latter hosted the first tournament on the American continent in 1876. Courts owner James White ( James white). In Boston, the first tournament was organized in 1880 (09.29-17.10) on the courts of "Beacon Park".
On May 21, 1881, the National Lawn Tennis Association of the United States ( USNLTA), led in the first year by Robert S. Oliver ( Robert S. Oliver) and then James Dwight ( James dwight) (author's note In 1920. in the title the word "national" was removed, and in 1975 - the word "laun"). To establish uniform technical standards in the country at the first meeting, the size of the balls, the height of the net and the distance from the net to the service line were specified. The association, which included 34 tennis clubs, held the first National Championships in men's singles and doubles in the same year from August 31 to September 3 in Newport. 33 players participated. The winner was Richard Sears ( Richard Sears), who invariably became the champion 6 more times. Clarence Clarke ( Clarence clark) and Fred Taylor ( Fred taylor).
The beginning of women's participation was marked in 1887. They competed on the grounds of the Philadelphia Cricket Club ( Germantown Cricket Club). Ellen Hansell ( Ellen hansell), who beat Laura Knight ( Laura knight) with a score of 6: 1; 6: 0. The first mixed tournament took place in 1892, which was held in conjunction with the US Women's Championship. The winners were Englishwoman Mabel Cahill ( Mabel cahill) and American Clarence Hobart ( Clarence hobart).
In 1878, a landmark article appeared in the Harvard University newspaper, noting the exodus of physically fit students from rowing teams to tennis courts. First Interuniversity Championship ( Intercollegiate Championships) took place on October 9, 1884 in Hartford (Connecticut).
Tennis has become widespread on the Pacific coast - in California. In this state, courts were built with either clay or concrete surfaces. Tennis was especially widespread among the personnel of naval bases. The first Van Ness Avenue Lawn Tennis Club in San Francisco was founded by Mary Therese Austin in September 1884. In December 1885, it was named "California Tennis Club "Remaining to this day.
In 1881, the first official Lawn tennis rules, which, in general, did not differ in any way from the rules adopted by the All England Croquet and Lawn Tennis Club.
The renowned tennis center in Forest Hills ( Forest hills) in New York belonged to the club " West Side Tennis Club", Founded on April 22, 1892. The club was originally located on Central Park West in Manhattan. The first three courts opened on June 11, 1892 ( approx. author. ‒ VThe Forest Hills Club moved in the spring of 1914. and from the following year, for six decades, the US National Championship was held on its courts).
In 1895, 44 lawn tennis clubs were registered in the United States.
Have northern neighbor - Canada first club " Toronto Lawn Tennis Club"Was created in 1874 in Toronto by Isidore Frederick Hellmuth ( Isidore Frederick Hellmuth), who learned to play tennis while studying at the University of Cambridge (England). The first official tournament took place on the courts of this club in 1981, which since 1890 (2-6.09) acquired the status of the Canadian Championship and is known today as the "Rogers Cup" ( Rogers Cup) (Author's note Named after the founder of the communications and telecommunications company of the same name. In 1925. Ted Rogers invented the variable electricity ). The first winner was Isidor F. Helmut. The women joined in 1892 and the first title was won by Canadian Maud Delano-Osborne ( Maude Delano-Osborne).
The Canadian Lawn Tennis Association was founded in 1890 ( now called "Tennis Canada").
V South America became the first tennis country Argentina where the game was brought by British builders railways... The first club opened in the capital in 1892 under the name " Buenos Aires Lawn Tennis Club» ( author's note - The Argentina Lawn Tennis League (Liga Argentina de Lawn Tennis del Río de la Plata) was organized on November 17, 1914, uniting 5 clubs. The first president is Arthur Stuart Turner. In 1921. renamed Argentine Tennis Association).
V Chile, the first tennis courts appeared in Valparaiso in the mid-1880s. In the last decade of the 19th century, clubs arose in Valparaiso and Viña del Mare ( vSantiago - already at the beginning of the century) (author's note - The Chilean Lawn Tennis Association was founded in 1924.) .
AUSTRALIA
NS The manifestation of a new game on the Australian continent was assisted by students who studied in Cambridge and Oxford who came home for the holidays, as well as returned home after graduation. Their "missionary" activities soon bore fruit. The first tennis clubs were established at the end of 1876.
The beginning of the first tournament - the Championship of the State of Victoria " Victorian Championships»Dated February 23, 1880. Held in Melbourne. 16 people participated and A.F. Robinson ( A.F. Robinson). And in the same year, on November 11-19, at the sports base of the Melbourne club " Geelong Recreation Club"Another tournament was held in the Victoria Fall Championship ( covering courts up to 1891 ‒ asphalt, then ‒ grass). The first winner of the "Challenge Cup" was Francis Hidett ( Francis Highett), who outplayed Edward William ( Edward william) - an Englishman living in Australia. In subsequent years, only one November tournament was held, which became the predecessor of the Australian Championship. The doubles tournament took place for the first time in 1890. It was won by H.V. Bareram ( H.W. Bartram) and Norman Bagles ( Norman bagles). In the same year, the Western Australian Lawn Tennis Association was established.
At first, due to the geographical remoteness, foreigners did not take part in the tournaments. The first foreigner who arrived specially for the tournament was an Englishman in 1988 John Hartley ( John Hartley) ‒ champion of Wimbledon 1879, 1880, who lost in the final to Percy Kolkuhuna ( Percy colquhoun).
From 4 to 7 May 1885, the first intercolonial tournament, the "Championship of New South Wales" ( New South Wales Championships). The tournament was held on grass courts, 20 people took part, of which two were from the UK. Defeated Englishman William John Bush-Salmon ( William John Bush-Salmon).
Over the past five years, lawn tennis has become very popular and affordable. For example, there were 150 courts in Melbourne and its suburbs alone.
The most famous club "Kooyong Lawn Tennis Club" in Kuyong (a suburb of Melbourne) was founded in 1892. Its grass courts have hosted the Australian Championship ( author's note - The Australasian Lawn Tennis Association was founded in September 1904. To form a unified team in the Davis Cup, six Australian state associations merged with New Zealand, which was then a branch of LTA. In 1922. Australian Lawn Tennis Association split into two associations: Australia and New Zealand. Since 1990 The Association of Australia is named "Tennis Australia").
V New Zealand first club "Parnell Lawn Tennis" created in 1877 in Oakland. A n first tournamentpassed in Napier - a large port city. The winner was New Zealander ( Englishman by birth) E.P. Hudson ( E.P. Hudson). The New Zealand Tennis Association was founded on December 1, 1886 ( now called "Tennis New Zealand") By John Jardine ( John jardine) v Napier. In 1888 she moved to the capital Wellington.
The first national championship was held from 12 to 31 December 1886. Percival Clennell Fenwick ( Percival clennell fenwick) Is an English immigrant. The women's championship was held in 1895, which was also won by the English immigrant Kathleen Nunnelly ( Kathleen nunneley), as well as all subsequent 12 championships.
OTHER CONTINENTS
V India first tournament " Punjab State Championship " took place in Lahore in 1885, and since 1887 began to be held another tournament in Kolkata is the West Bengal State Championship. Since 1888 in Bombay - "Championship of the West of India". The latter was attended only by the British. Champion - F. Ward ( F. Ward). (author's note Among the participants I found a player with the name of W. Murray).
V South Africa with the oldest club "Richmond Tennis Club" in Richmond dates back to 1877 and in the same year it held its first tournament. In 1884 in Pietermaritzburg took place tournament "Natal Championships". The games were played on asphalt courts and the Englishman Kravfurd won ( Crawfurd).
By 1882, tennis had become one of the main features of colonial life in Pietermaritzburg and Durban (cities in British colony Natal) .
The South African Championships were held in 1891 in Port Elizabeth on the courts of the local tennis club ( in some sources in Cape Town). Prizes were awarded in the men's singles and doubles, as well as in the women's singles and mixed doubles. Lionel Richardson ( Lionel richardson).
By the beginning of the 19th century, tennis became widespread in the following cities: Pietermaritzburg, Durban, Johannesburg, Cape Town, Port Elizabeth, East London, Bloemfontein, Kimberley and Pretoria ( author's note - The South African Lawn Tennis Union dates back to 1903).
V 1896 tennis was included in the program among the nine sports first Olympic Games in Athens. 13 men and 8 male couples took part.
Competitions were held on the courts of the Athens Tennis Club. The singles tournament was held on April 8, 9 and 11. For the doubles tournament, due to the small number of participants, one day was allocated - April 11. The tournament was attended by teams from Australia, Great Britain, Hungary, Germany, Greece, France.
Irishman John Boland ( John boland), who won the singles final of the Greek Dionysios Kasdaglis (6: 2; 6: 2), and together with the German Friedrich Thrawn ( Friedrich traun) in doubles they outplayed the hosts Kasdaglis and Demetrios Petrokokkinos (6: 2; 6: 4).
It is curious that the future champion got to the Games by accident, having come to visit his Greek friend on Easter. In the further John Boland became a prominent politician.
In 1900, women joined the fight for Olympic medals in Paris. Competitions were held in four categories (without female pairs). The first Olympic champion, among the six participants, was the Englishwoman Shyrota Cooper ( Charlotte cooper). She, along with Reginald Docherty, won gold in the mixed category. Reginald, along with his brother Lawrence, also celebrated the victory in doubles. In turn, Lawrence became the best in singles. Thus, this trio won in all played categories. In total, the British national team took home 14 medals, and the owners were content with only four ( author's note In the first two Olympics, there was no requirement that couples be staffed by representatives of the same country, and some couples were international ) .
NS before the beginning of the new century another significant event in the history of tennis took place, which gave rise to the unofficial world championship among national men's teams - the Davis Cup ( Davis Cup). In 1899, a wealthy American and a member of the Harvard University team ( Massachusetts, USA) on tennis Dwight Davis ( Dwight davis) during the holidays, he invited his English tennis friends to visit and invited them to play a match meeting with the Boston national team ( author's note Dwight Davis in 1898. was a US Championship finalist, a ferry champion with Holcomb Ward in 1899-1901, a finalist with the same partner at Wimbledon, 1901.). Davis's teammates were friends and fellow students: Malcolm Whiteman ( Malcolm whitman) (US champion in 1898-1900.) and Holcomb Ward ( Holcombe ward) (champion of the USA in 1904).
A surprise for the participants of the meeting was a prize - a silver salad bowl weighing 6.152 kg and dimensions: 45.7 cm wide, 33.0 cm high. ). Friends jokingly called this prize: " Little Dwight's Pot"(a tray for a salad bowl was made a little later).
In February 1900, the tennis associations of England and the United States, with the consent of Dwight Davis, decided to hold an annual team tournament between the national teams of England and the United States, the winner of which was awarded a challenge cup, donated by Davis. The tournament was called "International Lounge Tennis Challenge" ( International Lawn Tennis Challenge) (author's note The tournament got its current name since 1946 after the death of D. Davis).
The first official match meeting took place on August 8, 1900 in Boston on the courts " Longwood cricket club» ( abandoned in 1878.) in the presence of 120 spectators. The British were considered favorites, although they did not participate in both teams: the British had the first numbers of brothers Reginald and Lawrence Docherty ( Reggie and laurie doherty), while the Americans have more experienced William Larned ( William larned) and Robert Rennes ( Robert Wrenn). The first to enter the court were Dwight Davis (captain of the American team) and Ernest Black ( Earnest black). The score of their meeting is 4: 6; 6: 2; 6: 4; 6: 4. Then Malcolm Whiteman defeated the English captain Arthur Gore ( Arthur gore) - 6: 1; 6: 3; 6: 2. The next day, a duel of pairs took place. The Americans Davis and Ward again beat the British Roper Barrett ( Roper Barrett) and Black with a score of 6: 4; 6: 4; 6: 4. And thus the American team became the first winner of this tournament. On August 10, the insignificant duel between Davis and Gore began. The first set was won by Davis (9: 7), but due to a thunderstorm the match was not finished.
The British explained their loss by the very poor technical support of the match. Roper Barrett wrote: " The ground was soft. The grass is long. There is not a single grass court in England that is even half as long as Longwood. The net is a disgrace to civilized tennis. She often sagged, and her height was constantly in need of adjustment. As for the balls, I don’t want to think about them. They were terrible - soft and after serving they flew spinning like plums. They not only swirled in the air, but also after bouncing off the ground. Receiving such balls confused us. Our team as a whole was at a disadvantage".
V last year of the century - in 1900, 63 official tournaments were held:
- In the UK - 27 (in England - 22)
- In Europe - 21
- In Australia - 8
- In the USA - 3
- In Canada ‒1
- Olympic Tournament, European Championship, Davis Cup
Modern tennis originated as a form of indoor tennis that had a long history.
Various games with a small ball, which were thrown to each other, hit on it with a hand, etc., were known in ancient times. There are many references to the game of ball, which was fought off by the ancient Romans and Greeks with a hand or stick. Also, something similar to the game of tennis could be seen in Italy in the 12-13th centuries. The name of this game was "jidoko". But it is officially accepted that tennis originated in France. Once upon a time, about eight hundred years ago, the small ball game was born in France. It all happened like this ... With blows of the hand, namely with palms, medieval tennis players threw this ball to each other. The rackets came later. Many people liked the game, but first of all the ministers of the church. The ministers played mainly on the stone floor under the monastery vaults. Time passed, tennis developed, and soon they began to put on a special glove on the hand that was hitting the ball. Later, simple, one might say primitive, wooden rackets appeared, vaguely reminiscent of the modern one. This object started the era of racquets, but it was only 400 years later that they began to pull the strings. As already mentioned, many people played tennis. The game became more and more popular. The secular people of those times picked up the trend of playing tennis. Such an energetic and exciting fight on the court did not leave people indifferent to this game. Crowds of people came to the open matches. Tennis became so popular that King Louis 11 of France (1461-1483) issued a decree obliging tennis ball manufacturers to strictly adhere to the following parameters: “The ball must be stuffed with high-quality leather and wool. In no case should the ball contain sawdust, chalk, earth, metal shavings, bran, sand, ash, chalk, moss, dust and other substandard substitutes ”. Tennis more and more evolved, it became popular not only in France, but also in the oldest Europe. The peak of popularity fell in the 15-16th century, there was a tennis boom, which does not pass to this day. He even captured women! According to eyewitness accounts from magazines, we loan that in 1427 a young woman made her debut in Paris with great success. Her name was Margot. On the tennis court, she knew how to send the ball towards the opponent with high speed and accuracy. It turns out that only a few men managed to beat this medieval tennis star. From old sources it is known that by the end of the 16th century, in Paris alone, there were more than 250 tennis courts. They were specially equipped for the seven thousandth army of fans of this game. People played, the rules were gradually established, the division of players into categories began. Shared depending on their skill level. At that time, there were 3 categories of players: “beginners, partners and masters”. It is clear that the medieval tennis masters were far from poor people. So they got big rights to build courts and special structures. They also owned them, as well as workshops for the manufacture of balls and rackets. One of these professional masters, in 1542, developed the first rules of the game, which were not officially published until 50 years later.
France is considered the birthplace of modern tennis (there is an assumption that the word “tennis” itself comes from the French “tenez” - “here you go, take it!”). In the monasteries of France as early as the 11th century. a game called "jeu de paume" was known, i.e. play with the palm. At first, the players really played with their hands, but over time they "armed" themselves with rackets, although they did not take on the usual form for us until the 16th century. De pom was extremely popular in France. According to some reports, by the beginning of the 17th century. in Paris alone, there were several hundred "houses for the ball game", and in 1610 the manufacturers of balls and racquets united into an independent guild.
By this time, there was already an account in the game, in many ways reminiscent of modern tennis rules. Experts still have not come to a consensus regarding its origin. According to one version, an unusual division was introduced by analogy with a watch dial, where each hour was divided into quarters. Supporters of another - no less widespread - theory believe that such a division corresponded to the dignity of French bargaining chips that were in circulation in the 16th century.
In 1740, France hosted the World Tennis Championship, the first competition of this rank in the history of sports. Ironically, in France itself, tennis was going through hard times at that time. But in neighboring England, the popularity of the game borrowed from the French, on the contrary, increased, and in the 19th century. the center of world tennis finally moved there.
In 1872, the first club was created in Lemington, uniting fans of this game. Two years later, Major Walter Clopton Wingfield officially patented a form of tennis called "spherical". A year later, he proposed a new name for "lawn tennis". Already in 1876, the first lawn tennis tournament was held in the United States. And his triumphant march across the world began.
The All-Russian Union of Lawn Tennis Clubs (VSLTK) is the forerunner of the Russian Tennis Federation - the oldest sports union in Russia. Its charter was registered on June 3, 1908 and entered in the register of St. Petersburg societies under No. 265. This date is considered the "birthday" of the flagship of the national tennis.
The founder and first chairman of the VSLTK is a prominent figure in Russian sports, Artur Davidovich MacPherson (1870 - 1919).
Scot by blood, MacPherson was born in St. Petersburg. He lived there all his life and gave all his strength to the formation and development of national sports. MacPherson was the first chairman of three all-Russian unions at once - lawn tennis, football and rowing societies, a member of the first composition of the Russian Olympic Committee. In 1903, MacPherson organized the 1st St. Petersburg Championship on the courts of the Krestovsky Lawn Tennis Club, and in 1907, the All-Russian Lawn Tennis Competition, the first All-Russian tennis championship. Until 1917, he headed the All-Russian Union of Lawn Tennis Clubs (VSLTK), created by him. Published the "Yearbook of the VSLTK" (1909 -1916) and the magazine "Lawn Tennis" (1912 - 1914). Development Merit Russian sports in 1913 he was awarded the Order of St. Stanislaus, 3rd degree.
After the Bolshevik revolution in 1917, he was arrested twice. He died in 1919 in one of the Moscow prisons from typhus.
The highest award of the Russian Tennis Federation "Commemorative Medal of Arthur MacPherson", established on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the RTF, was named after A. D. McPherson.
Since its inception, the RTF has passed a difficult, thorny path. After the revolution, the authorities were suspicious of the "white-bellied sport", this "burp of bourgeois sport", and then for decades kept him in a black body just because he was not an Olympic sport. And yet, domestic tennis survived. Withstood, in spite of all persecution and persecution.
The main milestones of Russian tennis
In Russia, tennis as a sport has been known since the third quarter of the 19th century. One of the first lawn tennis enthusiasts was the great Russian writer Leo Tolstoy - four years after the invention of lawn tennis (1874), he described the game in his novel Anna Karenina. The first courts for playing lawn tennis appeared in St. Petersburg, and later in Moscow.
1860 - the St. Petersburg cricket club was founded, which by the end of the 80s of the XIX century. also began to cultivate lawn tennis.
1882 - The St. Petersburg magazine "Niva" publishes the article "English game of ball in the meadow (lawn tennis)", the first significant publication on lawn tennis in Russia.
1888 - The Lakhtinsky Lawn Tennis Club, the first lawn tennis club in Russia, was founded.
1903 - Russian tennis players took part in an international tournament in Stockholm. This was the first performance of domestic racket masters abroad.
1907 - in St. Petersburg, on the courts of the Krestovsky Lawn Tennis Club, the First All-Russian Lawn Tennis Competition was held, in which 65 tennis players took part.
1908 - the All-Russian Union of Lawn Tennis Clubs was founded, the prototype of the current Russian Tennis Federation. The founders are 8 Russian lawn tennis clubs.
1912 - the first open championship of Russia took place, in which the strongest tennis players of Europe and the USA took part for the first time. In the same year, Russian tennis players took part in the Olympic Games in Stockholm for the first time.
1913 - The All-Russian Union of Lawn Tennis Clubs co-founded the International Lawn Tennis Union (now the International Tennis Federation).
1918 - the first Moscow tennis championship, in which representatives of 11 clubs met.
1924 - the first USSR championship was played. The first Soviet champions were T. Sukhodolskaya (Leningrad) and G. Stolyarov (Moscow).
1928 - tennis competitions were held as part of the All-Union Spartakiad; the team victory was won by the Muscovites. Muscovite S. Maltseva became the champion in singles, Leningrader E. Kudryavtsev became the absolute champion among men.
1929 - the All-Union Tennis Section was created, the governing body for the development of tennis in the USSR.
1936-1937 - the great French tennis player A. Cochet came to the USSR, who opened his tennis school in Moscow. Among her listeners were such famous Soviet masters as E. Korbut, N. Ozerov, S. Belits-Geiman, N. Nifontova, V. Filippova.
1942 - the championship of the capital took place in Moscow, in which N. Teplyakova and E. Korbut won.
1944 - 50 participants (26 men and 24 women) came to Moscow for the USSR military championship.
1956 - the USSR Tennis Federation was established; in the same year the USSR Tennis Federation was admitted to the International Tennis Federation. Since 1956, international tennis tournaments have been regularly held in the USSR - a traditional winter international tournament on indoor courts, and since 1957 - an international summer tournament.
1958 - Soviet masters made their debut in official international tournaments under the auspices of the ITF. A. Dmitrieva and A. Potanin took part in the open championships of the county of Kent (Beckham tournament), London and in the Wimbledon tournament among juniors. Dmitrieva finished 2nd at the Beckham tournament and came second at Wimbledon. Potanin became a finalist of the Beckham tournament and reached the quarterfinals of the junior tournament in Wimbledon.
1962 - training of tennis specialists began in the USSR. At the State Central Order of Lenin Institute of Physical Culture, a tennis department was opened.
1964 - the USSR youth team (youths under 20) won the Galea Cup for the first time.
1967 - the USSR national team reached the Davis Cup zonal final for the first time.
1968 - the USSR youth team (girls under 20) won the Suabo Cup for the first time.
1969 - Soviet tennis players won the European Amateur Championship in the team event for the first time.
1970 - O. Morozova and A. Metreveli - finalists of the Wimbledon tournament in the mixed category.
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1972 - A. Metreveli - winner of the open championships of five Australian states and the first racket of the world among amateurs.
1973 - A. Metreveli - finalist of the Wimbledon tournament in singles.
1974 - O. Morozova - Wimbledon finalist in singles and French champion in doubles (with K. Evert).
1987 - A. Chesnokov won the professional tournament in Florence and became the first Soviet tennis player to win the Grand Prix tournament.
1989 - N. Zvereva and L. Savchenko won the Roland Garros doubles tournament.
1990 - the first professional men's tennis tournament "Kremlin Cup" was held in Moscow; A. Cherkasov became its first winner.
1991 - N. Zvereva and L. Savchenko - the first Soviet tennis players to become champions of Wimbledon (in doubles).
1996 - E. Kafelnikov won the French Open in singles and doubles. Kafelnikov is the first Russian tennis player to win a Grand Slam singles tournament (and score a “winning double”).
1999 - E. Kafelnikov was the first Russian tennis player to take 1st place in the world singles ranking.
2000 - for the first time a Russian tennis player became the Olympic tennis champion - E. Kafelnikov won the Olympic tournament in Sydney.
Marat Safin won the US Open.
2002 - the Russian team won the Davis Cup for the first time. In the final, which took place in Paris "Bercy", the national team led by Sh. Tarpishchev defeated the French team.
2004 - Anastasia Myskina won in the final of Roland Garros against compatriot Elena Dementieva - for the first time two representatives of Russia played in the final of the Grand Slam championship.
Maria Sharapova was the first Russian tennis player to win the Wimbledon singles tournament.
Svetlana Kuznetsova won the US Open in singles.
The Russian women's team won the Federation Cup for the first time. In Moscow, the Tarpishchev team won over the French team.
For the first time, the International Tennis Federation named a Russian woman the world champion among professional tennis players - she was Anastasia Myskina (world champion in 2004).
2005 - Maria Sharapova was the first Russian woman to rise to the first place in the world ranking in singles.
2005 - the Russian national team won the Federation Cup again. On the courts of Roland Garros, the Russians defeated the French national team for the second time in a row.
2006 - the Russian men's team in the Moscow Davis Cup final defeated the Argentina national team and won the unofficial world team championship for the second time
2007 - 100 years after the first Russian championship was held in the suburb of St. Petersburg Vsevolozhsk, the jubilee Russian championship was held. The champions were: among men - Mikhail Elgin (St. Petersburg), among women - Anastasia Pivovarova (Moscow).
The Russian women's team won the Federation Cup for the third time in the last four years (Moscow, ISA Luzhniki).
Regardless of whether you are an amateur, a professional, or just watching tournaments on TV, you will surely want to know the history of the development of tennis.
Tennis has been known in Europe for over seven hundred years!
Tennis owes its birth to the "mother" of England. In the role of the "father", was the retired major Walter Wingfield (Walter Clopton Wingfield, 1833-1912), who developed the "exemplary tennis court" (patent # 685 dated 02.23.1874). But even earlier, in December 1873, he published the first pamphlet "Spheristics, or Lawn Tennis" - a set of precise rules that contributed to the spread of tennis in other countries and transforming it (over time) from entertainment to an international sport.
Why "spheristics"? At that time, among the gentlemen it was customary to use Greek words, and "spherical" means in Greek "ball game". Although the major laid the foundation for a new timeline for tennis, this game has its roots in the distant Middle Ages. It certainly originated in France, where it was known as jeu de paume (playing with the palm). The players hit the ball first with their palm, and with the back side too.
Valery Maximus (Valeries Maximus) - Roman writer of the time of Emperor Tiberius, in his book "The Prince's Advice", drew the first illustrations depicting a ball game.
Then they began to wrap the hand with a leather band, which was replaced by a glove. By the middle of the 14th century, players have the first bats, similar to those now used in cricket (English version of baseball). Rackets with strings appeared in the middle of the 16th century. The name "racket" may have come from the Arabic word rohat (palm of the hand) or from the Latin reticulum (mesh).
The most probable version of the origin of the word "tennis" is based on the fact that in France players exclaimed: "Tennes!" Before putting the ball into play. - “Here you go! Accept! "
The first mentions of the ball game can be found in church manuscripts from the 12th century. One of the very first in Europe was a court built in Valencia in 1285. Today only the name of the street reminds of it - "Gentlemen's Street of the Tennis Court".
Tennis has always been city fun. It was played, as a rule, in squares, on stone-paved pavements, blocking narrow streets with a ribbon or rope, which at the beginning was stretched quite high, at a level of 2x-2.5 meters. Over time, it sank lower.
The mobile energetic game has always attracted the audience, onlookers, among whom the first fans appeared. But from time to time, the city authorities began to prohibit these games, because they disrupted traffic in the city, were accompanied by noise, screams, broken windows.
So tennis players became lawbreakers, they were fined as much as three pounds or imprisoned for a month.
Tennis was forced to go outside the city and take refuge under the roofs of houses and monasteries. The first indoor tennis courts with a gallery for the king or his retinue appeared in the 15th century.
According to the testimony of the Venetian ambassador to France, there were about one thousand eight hundred (!) Indoor courts in Paris at the end of the 16th century. Here is the proof of Sir Robert Dallington, who visited France in 1598: “The whole country is literally covered with courts. There are many more of them here than churches. It seems that the French are born with a racket in hand. They are deprived of any moderation in their passion. They can be seen playing tennis in the heat of the day, when most normal people and does not think about going out into the street. "
Having ceased to be a popular pastime, tennis turned into a pastime for kings and aristocrats, and many played really well. Charles V, for example, built two courts, one of them in the Louvre. Louis XI and Louis XII were fond of tennis.
Under King François I, a court was built at Fontainebleau. The upbringing system of Louis XIII, who came to the throne at the age of nine, included tennis.
I did not stand aside and Louis XIV, who built in 1682. court at Versailles. The English kings also built courts in London and other cities, catching up with France in the popularity of the game. This game was brought from France by the knights of King Alexander III of Scotland.
After the French Revolution, many courts were closed or converted into tetars, warehouses. From that moment on, the leadership in tennis passed to the British.
Many documents testify to the popularity of tennis in England. The account for tennis balls has survived, which in 1454. paid by Robert Took: 4 pounds, at that time, was a huge amount. By comparison, a construction worker earned about £ 8 a year. The list of goods exported to London includes balls worth 1,699 pounds.
For the English kings, tennis was the second, after hunting, place among sports entertainment. King Henry II was a fan of the game.
Mentions of tennis can be found in Shakespeare's comedy Much Ado About Nothing, in the play Pericles, in the tragedy Henry IV, in Hamlet.
Popularity grew by leaps and bounds, and at the beginning of the 19th century, rackets were brandishing in England.
By the 18th century, the profession of "tennis master" in Europe was hereditary and passed down from generation to generation. For example, one of these surnames is Barcelloon. The Elder Joseph (1729-1790) was a royal gambler under Louis XIV.
Joseph's brother Jean, like his son Jean-Pierre Agricole, were craftsmen and owned a court in Grenoble. Then there was Pierre Barcelloon, who published the book The Rules and Principles of the Game of Tennis. Another representative of this genus, also Joseph Barcelon, received the nickname "Englishman", because often visited England and played there on the royal courts. In 1802 he won the match against the champion of England Philip Cox. Joseph continued to play until he was eighty.
The "Masters of Tennis" were not only court owners, but also professional players. They acted as instructors, entertaining the king. Under Louis XIII, such a professional was Pierre Gentil, who received a fairly high salary - 500 francs a year.
Another famous tennis dynasty in France is the Masson family. Pierre Masson owned four courts in the middle of the 18th century. His son Raymond performed frequently for Louis XV at Fontainebleau.
Although tennis was played mostly by men, the entrance to the court was open to women as well. Among them was the maiden Margot, who defeated many men. The famous professional was Jacques Edmond Barre (1802-1873). He defeated all opponents on the French court for twenty years. In 1855. he retired from the king 1,200 francs, but continued to play for the rest of his life.
Before official registration tennis remained for several years. On the way to the goal was at first Major Harry Gem, who laid out a tennis court on the lawn in 1858, and became president of the first purely tennis club in the country in 1872.But then another major, already known to us Walter Wingfield, said his weighty word. For several years, independently of Gem, he created the game on the lawn more lively and commercially viable. He experimented with the height of the net, the size and shape of the court, the size and weight of the racket and balls, until he finally came up with the final version. Appeared new game- spherics. The patent cost the inventor £ 25.
The major easily "won back" this amount by selling a standard set of tennis for five guineas: four rackets, six balls, a net and racks. The matter is clearly gone, tk. within a year, among the buyers were: eleven princes, seven dukes, seventeen marquises, sixty earls, one hundred and five viscounts, forty-one barons and other members of high society.
The first rules of the game were laid out in the book by Pierre Barcelona, Principles and Rules of the Game, published in Paris in 1800. The rules of the game, introduced in 1875. London "Marylebone Cricket Club", with some changes and additions, are still valid to this day.
In 1869. the "All England Croquet Club" was founded. Six years later, one of its members, Henry Jones, offered the club a game of tennis, which quickly became popular, and in 1877. the club was renamed the All England Croquet and Lawn Tennis Club, now known to us as Wimbledon. the first tennis championship was held at Wimbledon in 1877. (22 participants and 200 spectators). The winner was Spencer Gore.
In 1881. the first German tennis club appeared in Baden-Baden, and in 1829. the first International Championship took place there.
At first, tennis was a game of aristocrats, and only in the 20s of our century, when the best athletes - American Bill Tilden, French "musketeers" - Lacoste, Cochet, Bruignon, Borotra and his compatriot Suzanne Lengren - attracted thousands of spectators to the stands, to this the common people also began to take part in the sport. S. Lengren laid the foundation for professional tennis.
From 1896 to 1924, tennis was an Olympic sport, and only in 1988, at the Olympic Games in Seoul ( South Korea), after a long hiatus, he became one again.
April 22, 1968 In the south of England, in the town of Bournemouth, the tennis amateurs' championship was held, to which professionals were admitted for the first time, and it began to be called "open".
The first Italian club appeared in 1878. in the resort of Bordighera, and the first national championship was held in 1895.
In the Netherlands, the first club was founded in Harlem in 1882. The first clubs were founded in 1889. in Portugal and in 1890. in Belgium. In the Czech Republic, a tennis club appeared in 1893, and in Bulgaria - in 1896.
In Poland in Warsaw in 1896. the first tournament was held. In Spain, the first tennis lawn club was founded in Barcelona in 1899, despite the fact that in the Middle Ages it was already known under the names "long-pom", "kurt-pom", "pilotta".
