How about the number of fish and chips portions served during the event? It's 32,000, in case, you're wondering.
Test your tennis knowledge and take this quiz on fun Wimbledon facts all taken right from the organization that should know—The All England Lawn Tennis & Croquet Club Limited (AELTC), which runs the day-to-day operations of The Championships.
Q: Who is Rufus?
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Hint: He's at The Championships most mornings.
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open tennis tournamentA: Harris Hawk (And Assistant Groundskeeper)
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Rufus is a Harris Hawk trained by Wayne Davis of Avian Control. Rufus flies for one hour most mornings before the gates open as a deterrent to local pigeons.
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open tennis tournamentQ: Name the Players and Year of the Longest Match in Wimbledon History
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Hint: The final set lasted eight hours and 11 minutes.
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open tennis tournamentA: John Isner versus Nicolas Mahut
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Wikimedia Commons
In 2010, Isner of the U.S. defeated Mahut of France after a nail-biting match played over three days. The total play time was 11 hours and 5 minutes and is not only the longest at Wimbledon, but in all of tennis history. Isner served the most aces—113—in a match. Fun fact: 123 balls were used.
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open tennis tournamentQ: Who Had the Most Aces During Wimbledon?
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Hint: It wasn't John Isner.
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open tennis tournamentA: Goran Ivanisevic
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Wikimedia Commons
Goran Ivanisevic of Croatia had 212 aces during Wimbledon in 2001. Ivanisevic defeated U.S. Open champion Patrick Rafter to win Wimbledon that year. Americans Alexandra Stevenson and Serena Williams have tied the record for the most aces—57—by a female player during Wimbledon.
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open tennis tournamentQ: How Many Tennis Balls Are Used During Wimbledon?
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Extra points if you know what year yellow balls were first used.
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open tennis tournamentA: 54,250 balls used
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The tennis balls used during the Championships period are stored at 68 degrees, according to AELTC. New balls are provided after the first seven games in any given match, then after every nine games. Bonus: Yellow balls were used for the first time in 1986.
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open tennis tournamentQ: How Many Spectators Are in Wimbledon Grounds at Any One Time?
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Hint: It's in the thousands.
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open tennis tournamentA: 38,500
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Of course, there are millions more watching online or live TV broadcast. In 2013, there were 1.5 million streams of Live @ Wimbledon and 60,000 subscribers on YouTube, according to AELTC. ESPN registered a 1.7 rating in 2013 for the men's final, which represents an average of 1,894,000 homes and nearly 2.5 million viewers.
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open tennis tournamentQ: What Player Made a Splash for Actually Following the "Mostly" White Clothing Rule?
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Hint: This top player's conformity is what surprised most people.
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open tennis tournamentA: Andre Agassi
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Andre Agassi long refused to play at Wimbledon, in part because he didn't approve of the all-white dress code. That changed in 1991 when Agassi, donning his once-trademark rockstar mullet, walked onto the court at Wimbledon in regulation tennis whites.
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open tennis tournamentQ: How Many Racquets Are Strung During the Championships?
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A team of stringing experts provides this service during Wimbledon.
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open tennis tournamentA: On Average, More Than 2,000 Racquets
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About 60 percent of the racquets are for men and 40 percent for women players. In total, this adds up to more than 40 miles of string, according to the AELTC.
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open tennis tournamentQ: How Many Glasses of Pimm's Are Served During Wimbledon?
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Wimbledon is the largest single annual sporting catering operation carried out in Europe and requires some 1,800 staff, according to the AELTC.
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open tennis tournamentA: On Average, 200,000 Glasses
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This cocktail is a staple at Wimbledon. Folks who don't care for the liqueur have plenty of other options at Wimbledon. On average, 250,000 bottles of water, 100,000 pints of draught beer and lager, 25,000 bottles of champagne and 300,000 cups of tea and coffee are served during the 13-day event, according to the Championships' caterers FMC.
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