Category: Wimbledon

  • Wimbledon increases Ladies’ Champion’s purse by 12%

    This year, Wimbledon will give male and female players equal amount of money, and more money than ever before! “No tennis tournament has ever offered higher prize money than Wimbledon in 2007,” claimed Tim Phillips, Chairman of the All England Club and The Championships. The 25 June-8 July tournament will have an overall fund of £11,282,71 — 8,7% higher than last year.

    Winner of Wimbledon 2007 will take home much more money than last year’s winner. Amelie Mauresmo took the trophy in 2006 and earned £625,000 — £30,000 less than her male counterpart Roger Federer. This year, both Men’s and Ladies’ Champion will receive £700,000.

    Wimbledon made this change, along with some other changes, to reward the players appropriately for the talent, entertainment and drama they bring to this prestigious grass court tournament.

  • Wimbledon will be Clijsters’ final Grand Slam

    The most likeable female tennis player, Kim Clijsters, decided Wimbledon to be the last Grand Slam of her career. This means that she won’t play at the U.S. Open, which she won in 2005.

    However, the former No.1 decided to play both singles and doubles at Wimbledon; “That way, I would be able to stay a bit longer at my last Grand Slam tournament,” she announced on her website.

    Clijsters has already withdrawn from the French Open, because she will be preparing for her wedding at that time. The 23-year-old Belgian will get married to Brian Lynch, American basketball player, on July 14, in her hometown of Bree.

    Clijsters has had many problems with injuries during her career, and at the moment she is still recovering from a sore back which forced her to leave the Sony Ericsson Open early. Clijsters’ next tournament is J&S Cup in Warsaw which starts on April 30, where she is the defending champion. “I’m not fully there yet, but I want to get used to clay again,” world No.4 said.

    Kim Clijsters will retire after the tournament in Stuttgart which starts on October 1. She wants to become a housewife who will support her husband and his career.

    (sources: ESPN, BBC Sport)