Editing Wimbledon Championships (section)

==Grounds==
[[File:cmglee Wimbledon Championships venue aerial.jpg|thumb|right|Aerial view of the grounds]]
{{Main|All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club}}

Since 2001, the courts used for Wimbledon have been sown with 100% [[ryegrass|perennial ryegrass]]. Prior to 2001 a combination of 70% ryegrass and 30% [[Creeping Red Fescue]] was used. The change was made to improve durability and strengthen the sward to better withstand the increasing wear of the modern game.<ref>{{cite web|title=Wimbledon grass |url=http://www.wimbledon.com/en_GB/about_aeltc/201205091336575251545.html |publisher=Wimbledon Championship |access-date=7 February 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130507105351/http://www.wimbledon.com/en_GB/about_aeltc/201205091336575251545.html |archive-date= 7 May 2013 }}</ref>

The main show courts, [[Centre Court]] and [[No. 1 Court (Wimbledon)|No. 1 Court]], are normally used for only two weeks a year, during the Championships, but play can extend into a third week in exceptional circumstances. The remaining 17 courts are regularly used for other events hosted by the club. The show courts were in action for the second time in three months in 2012 as Wimbledon hosted the tennis events of the [[2012 Summer Olympics|2012 Olympic Games]]. One of the show courts is also used for home ties for the [[Great Britain Davis Cup team|Great Britain teams]] in the [[Davis Cup]] on occasions.

Wimbledon is the only remaining [[Grand Slam (tennis)|Grand Slam]] event played on natural grass courts. At one time, all the Majors, except the French Open, were played on grass. The [[US Open (tennis)|US Open]] abandoned grass in 1975 for [[green clay]] and the Australian Open did so in 1988 for [[hard court]]s; the US Open eventually adopted hard courts as well.

From 1877 until 1921, the club's grounds were situated on four acres of meadowland in central Wimbledon between Worple Road and the railway line. In 1908, this venue hosted the tennis events for the [[Tennis at the 1908 Summer Olympics|1908 Summer Olympic Games]].  As the attendance at the Championships grew, it became obvious before the First World War that the 8,000 ground capacity at Worple Road was inadequate, and so the Club started looking for a new site. It eventually settled on an area of land off Church Road, to the north of Wimbledon town centre, and moved to its new home in 1922. At the time the relocation was regarded as something of a financial gamble, costing as it did approximately £140,000. After the Club moved to the current site in Church Road, the old Worple Road ground then became the [[Wimbledon High School]] playing field, which it remains today.

The principal court at Church Road, Centre Court, was inaugurated in 1922. The new venue was substantially larger and was needed to meet the ever-growing public demand. 
[[File:Wimbledon order of play.jpg|thumb|left|The order of play for all courts is displayed on boards around the grounds.]]

Due to the possibility of rain during Wimbledon, a retractable roof was installed prior to the 2009 Championship. It is designed to close/open fully in 20 minutes and will be closed primarily to protect play from inclement (and, if necessary, extremely hot) weather during The Championships.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.wimbledon.com/en_GB/about_aeltc/201205091336573017483.html |title=Wimbledon – Centre Court roof |publisher=[[AELTC]] |access-date=1 September 2012 |archive-date=7 May 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130507072507/http://www.wimbledon.com/en_GB/about_aeltc/201205091336573017483.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Whilst the roof is being opened or closed, play is suspended. The first time the roof was closed during a Wimbledon Championship match was on Monday 29 June 2009, involving [[Amélie Mauresmo]] and [[Dinara Safina]]. The first full match played and completed under the roof featured [[Andy Murray]] and [[Stan Wawrinka]], played on the same date.

The court has a capacity of 14,979. At its south end is the Royal Box, from which members of the Royal Family and other dignitaries watch matches. Centre Court usually hosts the finals and semifinals of the main events, as well as many matches in the earlier rounds involving top-seeded players or local favourites.

The second most important court is No. 1 Court. The court was constructed in 1997 to replace the old No.1 Court, which was adjacent to Centre Court.  The old No.1 Court was demolished because its capacity for spectators was too low. The court was said to have had a unique, more intimate atmosphere and was a favourite of many players. Construction of a new retractable roof on the No.1 Court began after the 2017 Championships and was completed in time for the 2019 championships. The capacity of the stadium also rose by 900 to 12,345.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/timnewcomb/2019/06/11/wimbledons-new-no1-court-roof-marks-2019-stadium-changes/#44f3501c667f|title=New No. 1 Court Roof Among Stadium Changes For Wimbledon 2019|work=Forbes|date=11 June 2019|access-date=16 June 2019|archive-date=18 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210418070918/https://www.forbes.com/sites/timnewcomb/2019/06/11/wimbledons-new-no1-court-roof-marks-2019-stadium-changes/#44f3501c667f|url-status=live}}</ref>

Since 2009, a new [[No. 2 Court (Wimbledon)|No. 2 Court]] has been used at Wimbledon with a capacity for 4,000 people. To obtain [[planning permission]], the playing surface is around 3.5m below ground level, ensuring that the single-storey structure is only about 3.5m above ground level, and thus not affecting local views.<ref name="Wim 18">{{cite web |url=https://www.aeltc.com/cms/media/pressreleases/no2_24_04_07.aspx |title=Tickets – 2013 Wimbledon Championships Website – Official Site by IBM |publisher=[[AELTC]].com |access-date=6 July 2013 |archive-date=7 July 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110707091716/https://www.aeltc.com/cms/media/pressreleases/no2_24_04_07.aspx |url-status=live }}</ref> Plans to build on the current site of Court 13 were dismissed due to the high capacity of games played at the 2012 Olympic Games. The old No.2 Court has been renamed as [[No. 3 Court (Wimbledon)|No.3 Court]]. The old No.2 Court was known as the "Graveyard of Champions" because many highly seeded players were eliminated there during early rounds over the years, including [[Ilie Năstase]], [[John McEnroe]], [[Boris Becker]], [[Andre Agassi]], [[Pete Sampras]], [[Martina Hingis]], [[Venus Williams]], [[Serena Williams]] and [[Maria Sharapova]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://wimbledontennis.wordpress.com/2009/05/26/how-the-graveyard-of-champions-got-its-name/ |title=How the 'Graveyard of champions' got its name |date=26 May 2009 |publisher=Blog.wimbledon.org |access-date=11 December 2014 |archive-date=10 July 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140710110908/http://wimbledontennis.wordpress.com/2009/05/26/how-the-graveyard-of-champions-got-its-name/ |url-status=live }}</ref> The court has a capacity of 2,192 + 770 standing. In 2011 a new No.3 Court and a new Court 4 were unveiled on the sites of the old No.2 and 3 courts.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.aeltc.com/cms/debentures/about/longtermplan.aspx |title=Wimbledon Debentures – About Debentures – The Long Term Plan |publisher=[[AELTC]].com |access-date=26 July 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110608080457/http://www.aeltc.com/cms/debentures/about/longtermplan.aspx |archive-date=8 June 2011 }}</ref>
[[File:Wimbledon court No. 1.JPG|thumb|View from seats of Wimbledon Court No. 1]]
Because of the summer climate in southern England, Wimbledon employs 'Court Attendants' each year, who work to maintain court conditions. Their principal responsibility is to ensure that the courts are quickly covered when it begins to rain, so that play can resume as quickly as possible once the referees decide to uncover the courts. The outer court attendants are mainly university students working to make summer money. Centre Court is covered by full-time groundstaff, however.

At the northern end of the grounds is a giant television screen on which important matches are broadcast to fans inside the grounds without tickets to the relevant court. Fans watch from a gently inclined area of grass officially known as the [[Aorangi Terrace]]. When British players do well at Wimbledon, this area attracts fans for them, and is often renamed after them by the press: [[Greg Rusedski]]'s followers convened at "Rusedski Ridge", and [[Tim Henman]] has had the hill nicknamed [[Henman Hill]]. As both of them have now retired and Andy Murray is the most successful current British player, the hill is occasionally referred to as "Murray Mound" or "[[Murrayfield Stadium|Murrayfield]]", as a reference to his Scottish heritage and the Scottish rugby ground of the same name, but this has largely failed to catch on – the area is still often referred to as Henman Hill.{{citation needed|date=July 2022}} None of these nicknames are the official name.

===1913 suffragette terror attack===
{{see also|Suffragette bombing and arson campaign}}
An attempt was made to destroy the grounds in 1913, during the [[suffragette bombing and arson campaign]]. The [[suffragettes]], as part of their campaign for women's votes before the First World War, had begun carrying out politically motivated [[arson]] and bombings across the country.<ref>{{cite news |title=Suffragettes, violence and militancy |url=https://www.bl.uk/votes-for-women/articles/suffragettes-violence-and-militancy |access-date=25 September 2021 |work=British Library |archive-date=10 September 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210910203912/https://www.bl.uk/votes-for-women/articles/suffragettes-violence-and-militancy |url-status=live }}</ref> On the night of 27 February 1913, a suffragette woman "between the ages of 30–35" was arrested within the grounds, after being spotted by a groundsman climbing over a hedge at around midnight.<ref name="Kay">{{cite journal |last1=Kay |first1=Joyce |title=It Wasn't Just Emily Davison! Sport, Suffrage and Society in Edwardian Britain |journal=The International Journal of the History of Sport |date=2008 |volume=25 |issue=10 |page=1342 |doi=10.1080/09523360802212271 |s2cid=154063364 |url=https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/09523360802212271 |access-date=25 September 2021 |archive-date=25 September 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210925163025/https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/09523360802212271 |url-status=live }}</ref> She was found to have with her some [[kerosene|paraffin]] and wood shavings, for the purpose of setting fires in the grounds.<ref name="Kay"/> The woman refused to give her name or any information to the police and was later sentenced to two months' imprisonment.<ref name="Kay"/>

===Bank of England Sports Centre===

The qualifying matches, prior to the main draw, take place at the [[Bank of England Ground|Bank of England Sports Ground]], in [[Roehampton]], {{convert|3.6|mi|km|1}} from the All England Club.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.wimbledon.com/en_GB/atoz/qualifying.html |title=Qualifying – Information on The Championships Qualifying Competition |publisher=Wimbledon |access-date=1 July 2017 |archive-date=17 June 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170617102906/http://www.wimbledon.com/en_GB/atoz/qualifying.html |url-status=live }}</ref>