History Of Wimbledon Winners

Looking for a history of Wimbledon winners? The Wimbledon Championship in tennis is the premier event for a tennis player to win. Held annually from late June to early July in Wimbledon, England (near London), some of the top tennis players in the world have won this historic tournament since its inception in 1877.

On the men's side, the top players of the past were William Renshaw, Reggie Doherty and Laurie Doherty, all of the United Kingdom. Renshaw, of Warwickshire, won a total of fourteen Wimbledon titles, including six gentlemen's singles titles in a row (1881 through 1886). The Doherty brothers, born in Wimbledon, were eight-time gentlemen's doubles champions (1897 through 1901 and 1903 through 1905). Both brothers also won singles titles, Laurie five times (1902 through 1906) and Reggie four times (1897 through 1900).

More recent top players have had more international origins. The top players at Wimbledon on the men's side since the 1970s have been Pete Sampras of the United States, Bjorn Borg of Sweden, Roger Federer of Switzerland and Todd Woodbridge of Australia. Sampras won seven Wimbledon gentlemen's titles in the 1990s, with his final one in 2000. Borg and Federer both won five consecutive titles (Borg from 1976 to 1980 and Federer from 2003 to 2007). Woodbridge has been a member of a gentlemen's doubles-winning team at Wimbledon nine times, six with Mark Woodforde and three with Jonas Bjorkman.

The ladies' championship, which started at Wimbledon in 1884, has been dominated in both singles and doubles by three women. They are Elizabeth Ryan, Billie Jean King and Martina Navratilova. Ryan, a native of California, was a powerhouse in the doubles championships, winning twelve ladies' doubles titles and seven mixed doubles titles from 1919 to 1934. King, also of California, was an all-around champion, winning six singles titles, ten ladies' doubles titles and four mixed doubles titles. Navratilova, a Czech native who became a U.S. citizen in 1981, was also a well-rounded champion at Wimbledon, with nine ladies' singles championships, seven ladies' doubles championships and four mixed doubles championships.

Resources:

Wimbledon, the official site