Tennis at the Olympics
Tennis has a long history at the Olympic Games. Tennis was played at the Olympics until 1924, then reinstituted in 1988. There is currently a men's and women's singles and doubles tournament, and since London 2012 there has also been a mixed doubles event.
Arthur Gore,
1908 Olympic Gamessingles and doubles champion
Tennis was a demonstration sport in Mexico City in 1968, however the crowds and interest in the competition were small. Tennis was also played at the Los Angeles 1984 Olympics as a demonstration sport - the first time professional athletes were officially allowed to compete in any Olympic sport. This time fans bought out every seat at the tennis venue.
An early version of tennis, jeu de paume, was an official medal sport in 1908. There was a demonstration of jeu de paume in 1924 (called real tennis at the time).
Paris 2024 Tennis Events
There are five medal events for tennis: a men's and women's singles and doubles tournament, plus a mixed doubles event. The tournament will be played on clay at Roland-Garros.
Olympic Tennis Trivia
- John Boland of Ireland won the first gold medal awarded in Olympic tennis, and he also won a second gold that same year playing doubles.
- For the games in 1896, 1900, 1904, 1988, and 1992 the semi-final losers shared bronze medals. In all other years and in future tournaments a playoff match for the bronze medal was held.
- The first woman to win an individual Olympic event was England's Charlotte “Chattie” Cooper, who won the tennis singles at the 1900 games.
- In 1912, the Olympics and Wimbledon were held at the same time, and all of the best players chose to compete at Wimbledon.
- French player Suzanne Lenglen, one of the greatest women tennis players of all time, won the Olympic title in 1920, losing only four games. She teamed up with Max Decugis to win another gold medal in mixed doubles and with Elisabeth d'Ayen to win a bronze in women's doubles.
- French tennis player René Lacoste won a bronze medal in the men's doubles at Paris 1924. Lacoste went on the start the iconic clothing brand bearing his name.
- After the 1924 games, tennis and the Olympics had a messy break up. The Olympic Committee and the various tennis federations could not agree on how to settle the question of whether professional players should be allowed to compete.
- In 1988, tennis returned officially after a 64-year absence, and Steffi Graf won the women's gold and Miloslav Mecir of Czechoslovakia the men's competition.
- The most successful all-time performing tennis player at the Olympic Games is American Venus Williams, who has won four gold medals and a silver. Her sister Serena has also won four golds. See more on the greatest Olympic tennis players.
- Since the 2004 Athens Olympics, results from the Olympics tennis tournament count towards both the ATP and WTA world rankings in singles.
- In 2012 London, a mixed doubles event was officially included for the first time since 1924.
- In the first round of the Olympic tennis tournament in Rio, Australian John Millman beat Lithuania's Ricardas Berankis 6-0, 6-0 in just 50 minutes, the first time in Olympic tennis a player has not won a game in a match.
- The Paris 2024 tennis event is the first to be played on a clay court since the Barcelona 1992 Olympic Games.
Related Pages
- Tennis was an Olympic Demonstration Sport in 1968 and 1984.
- See more information about the sport of Tennis.
- See more on the greatest Olympic tennis players.
- List of Olympic Sports
- Wheelchair Tennis at the Paralympics
- Tennis is also played at the Commonwealth Games
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