In the second half of 2022, there will be many major sporting events, including the 135th edition of the Wimbledon Championships, one of the “Grand Slam” events in tennis. Swiss watch brand Rolex will also return to Wimbledon as the official timekeeper, witnessing many players compete for this prestigious title. The tournament is currently in the fourth round, and this year’s Wimbledon is particularly noteworthy as it coincides with the centenary of the Centre Court, paying tribute to this event and landmark.
In the hearts of tennis fans around the world, the Wimbledon Championships always hold a special place. Its charm lies not only in its long history, unique atmosphere, and deep-rooted traditions, but also in the countless epic showdowns it has witnessed among outstanding players in the tennis world. From the controversial Arthur Ashe and Jimmy Connors duel in 1975, the highly anticipated battle between Bjorn Borg and John McEnroe in 1980, Stefan Edberg against Boris Becker in 1990, Goran Ivanisevic facing off against Patrick Rafter in 2001, the 2005 women’s singles showdown between Venus Williams and Lindsay Davenport, to the three-year consecutive clashes starting in 2006 between career rivals Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, Wimbledon has continuously created legendary moments over the past centuries.
The All England Lawn Tennis & Croquet Club, the organizer of the event, focuses on the classic heritage of the event while also adhering to its commitment to innovation. However, Wimbledon will break tradition starting from this edition by eliminating the traditional Sunday rest day, extending the event to 14 days, meaning that the finals of this edition will take place on July 10th (Sunday). Following last year’s renovation project, Centre Court will now provide up to 15,000 spectator seats for Wimbledon’s finals, and to cope with the unpredictable weather in the UK, the new stadium has installed a retractable roof to ensure that the matches can proceed smoothly in adverse weather conditions.
This year’s event will feature several Rolex ambassadors, including 2017 Wimbledon women’s singles champion Garbiñe Muguruza, 2018 women’s singles champion Angelique Kerber, current world number one Iga Świątek, young American player Cori Gauff, and more. On the men’s side, 19-year-old Spanish player Carlos Alcaraz, who has already won four titles in the first half of the year, will also be competing for the second time.
Since 1978, Rolex has been associated with Wimbledon. Whenever the two are mentioned together, people always think of the former world number one, the Swiss king Federer. The 8-time Wimbledon men’s singles champion has been focusing on recovering from injuries in recent years and did not participate in this year’s tournament. This is a bit disappointing for most fans, but as a Rolex ambassador, he made a surprise appearance on the fourth round match day. It turns out that the brand and the tournament specially arranged for this superstar to celebrate the centenary of Centre Court together. The 40-year-old Federer attended the event in a suit this year, and he shared in an interview after the match: “I am very lucky to have played many matches on this court. But today, coming here in a different role, a different identity, feels really strange.”
Rolex has established long-term partnerships with all four Grand Slam tennis tournaments, dedicated to supporting elite players and legendary figures in the tennis world, while maintaining close ties with tennis governing bodies.
資料及圖片來源：Courtesy of Rolex
