Amazing French Open Facts and Trivia
Fun Facts and Trivia About the French Open Tennis
The French Open, also known as Rolland Garros is one of the four ‘Grand Slams’ in the yearly tennis calendar.
Here are some interesting, wild and mainly fun facts and figures about the French Open!
The French Open, also known as Roland Garros, is one of the four Grand Slam tennis tournaments, along with the Australian Open, Wimbledon, and the US Open.
The tournament takes place over two weeks at the Stade Roland Garros in Paris, France.
The French Open is the premier clay court tennis championship event in the world.
The tournament is named after Roland Garros, a World War I fighter pilot who was the first person to fly across the Mediterranean Sea.
The French Open was first played in 1891, and it has been held annually since then, except for during the two World Wars.
The tournament is played on a red clay surface, which makes for slower play and longer rallies than on other surfaces.
The ‘Clay Court is actually made up of 5 component parts -
A) 1-2mm of red brick dust
B) 6-7 cm of crushed White Limestone
C) Clinker - 7-8 cm of a type of coal residue
D) 30cm of crushed gravel
E) Drainage
The women's singles trophy is called the Coupe Suzanne Lenglen, named after the French tennis player who won 31 major titles between 1914 and 1926.
The men's singles trophy is called the Coupe des Mousquetaires, named after the famous French tennis team of the 1920s.
Rafael Nadal has won the most men's singles titles at the French Open, with 14 victories between 2005 and 2022.
Chris Evert has won the most women's singles titles at the French Open, with 7 victories between 1974 and 1986.
Bjorn Borg won 6 French Open titles between 1974 and 1981, and he is widely regarded as one of the greatest clay court players of all time.
Roy Emerson has the most doubles titles with 6
Martina Navratilova has the most women’s doubles titles with 7 championship wins.
The French Open is the only Grand Slam tournament that begins on a Sunday.
The tournament is broadcast in over 200 countries and has an estimated global audience of over 1 billion people.
The French Open is the second-richest tennis tournament in the world, with a total prize fund of over 38 million euros in 2021.
The French Open was the first Grand Slam tournament to offer equal prize money to men and women, starting in 2007.
The longest match in French Open history was a men's singles match between Fabrice Santoro and Arnaud Clément in 2004, which lasted 6 hours and 33 minutes.
The French Open has been won by players from 23 different countries in the men's singles and 16 different countries in the women's singles.
The youngest player to win the French Open men's singles title was Michael Chang, who was 17 years old when he won in 1989.
The French Open has been won by some of the greatest players in tennis history, including Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Bjorn Borg, Ivan Lendl, Justine Henin, Chris Evert, and Steffi Graf.
It's estimated that around 54,000 balls are used throughout the two-week tournament. The French Open uses Babolat balls, which are specifically designed for clay court play.
Sadly for the French, since tennis’ Open era began in 1968, Mary Pierce (2000) and Yannick Noah (1983) have been the only French winners of the tournament.
The oldest woman to win the French Open Singles is Serena Williams who was 33 years old and 8 months when she won in 2015.
The oldest man to win the men’s singles at Rolland Garros is Andres Gimeno, who won the tournament at 34 years and 10 months in 1972.
Check out our Tennis Quiz!
Interesting Facts about the Courts at Rolland Garros
Philippe Chatrier Court - This is the main court at Roland Garros and has a capacity of approximately 15,000 spectators.
Suzanne Lenglen Court - This court has a capacity of approximately 10,000 spectators.
Simonne-Mathieu Court - The newest court at Roland Garros, built in 2019, and has a capacity of approximately 5,000 spectators.
Court 1 - This court has a capacity of approximately 3,800 spectators.
Court 14 - This court has a capacity of approximately 1,800 spectators.
Court 7 - This court has a capacity of approximately 1,500 spectators.
Court 6 - This court has a capacity of approximately 1,200 spectators.
Fun Facts about Ball Girls and Boys at the French Open
The Ball Boys and Girls are known as "ramasseurs de balles"
There are anywhere between 250-300 ball girls and boys at each French Open tournament
They work in teams of six, with two at the net and four at the back of the court, and they rotate through different positions throughout the match to prevent fatigue.
We have more tennis content on our dedicated page
Click here for some amazing quotes about the French Open!
