French Open

The French Open has a long history, dating back to its first commencement as a strictly national event in 1891. Only licensed French tennis players were allowed to participate in the event. It did not officially open its doors to international competitors until 1925. The French Open is held between the months of May and June. This tournament is seen as extremely challenging for tennis players, since it takes place completely on clay court surfaces. Clay courts are known for creating slow play, since the hard surface causes the ball to bounce high into the air, bringing down the speed of the game. Slow play is physically demanding on athletes. The tournament enjoys a great deal of media coverage, broadcasting its games throughout several continents to tennis enthusiasts.

The Grand Slam

The French Open is second in prestige perhaps only to Wimbledon. The French Open is the second competition in an integral part of the greatest of all tennis title competitions, the Grand Slam, Consisting of four major tennis tournaments, the Grand Slam is made up of the Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon, and the U.S. Open. Players can acquire Grand Slam achievements in three ways. A player can receive a title by winning all four Grand Slam events in one calendar year (a Calendar Year Grand Slam). The title is also given when a player wins all four events in the Grand Slam series at some point in their career (a Career Grand Slam). Finally, a title is given if a player wins all four Grand Slam events consecutively, but not in the same calendar year (a Non-Calendar Year Grand Slam).

Originally, all Grand Slam events were reserved exclusively for competitors who were considered to be at the professional level. The French Open was the first Grand Slam event to open its doors to both professional and amateur tennis players in 1968.

French Open Records

Young tennis players have experienced successes at the French Open. 16 year old Monica Seles and 17 year old Michael Chang of the United States are the youngest competitors to see victories at the tournament. The French Open stands in the way of many great tennis players completion of their Grand Slam titles. Women’s singles competitors Lindsay Davenport and Martina Hingis are just one tournament shy of Grand Slam titles. They both lack a win at the French Open. Likewise, men’s singles tennis pro Pete Sampras succeeded in winning 14 other Grand Slam competition titles, but never the French Open.