Wimbledon 2010: Why did the Queen visit the All England Club?
It was a historic day at the All England Club; Queen Elizabeth made her first appearance on the lawns of SW19 after a gap of thirty-three years. It was a day, tennis players, championship organizers and spectators alike were looking forward too. The Royal Box at the Centre Court was a sight to see on Day four of the Championships.
It was 1pm when the Queen took her seat in the front row of the Royal Box. It was a bright sunny day with clear blue skies and the Queen dressed quite the part. She was attired in a Turquoise blue summer coat with a matching blue hat lined with a white brim. It was the perfect outfit to wear on a warm summer day. The last time Queen Elizabeth had visited the All England Club, it was the silver jubilee of the Queen’s reign. She had watched British Virginia Wade lift the trophy and become the last British woman to do so. Thus, keeping that in mind and giving her the honour as well, Virginia Wade was invited to be seated near the Queen in the Royal Box. Wade was made to sit in the row behind the Queen. Other British tennis stars that had the privilege to sit in the Royal Box were Angela Barrett who won the Wimbledon title in 1961 and Ann Jones who lifted the trophy in 1969. On the men’s side, the only tennis player who was invited to the box was Tim Henman. Even though Henman had not won the title, he had made England proud by reaching the semi-finals of the tournament four times in five years. Henman was seated right behind the Queen.
Before the Queen took her seat in the Royal Box, she had taken time out to meet the organizers and players. Queen Elizabeth had reached Wimbledon at about eleven in the morning. Fourteen year old Marianna Spring was the lucky ball girl who was chosen to present the Queen with a bouquet upon her arrival. The bouquet itself was carefully constructed with the best picked flowers to match up to the Queen. It consisted of hydrangea, agapanthus, peony and roses. Accompanying the Queen was her husband Prince Phillip, the Duke of York, who is also the President of the All England Club, and Tim Phillips who is the Chairman of the All England Lawn Tennis Championships. Tennis fans for the first time had queued up for long hours not just to see their favourite stars in action, but also to catch a glimpse of the Queen. The Queen did not disappoint. She took a tour of the lawns and grounds and also gave people a chance to see her.
Before the day’s play began, young British talent were practicing their skills on Court fourteen. The Queen stopped by as a token of encouragement and watched the budding stars in action. A special Green carpet was laid out for the Queen on Court fourteen who later met the young players. Each junior player walked up to the Queen and bowed in curtsey.
It was not just these young players who were eagerly waiting to meet the Queen. It was the senior players on the circuit as well who were anxiously awaiting an audience with the Queen, each wanting to show off their curtsey skills. The Queen was taken to the Millennium Building where the first ones to curtsey were Martina Navratilova and Billie Jean King. Next were the top four women tennis players, Serena and Venus Williams, Caroline Wozniacki and Jelena Jankovic. After their bow, it was the turn of Roger Federer, Andy Roddick and Novak Djokovic. Andy Murray missed out as he was on court warming up for his encounter. Rafael Nadal also had to give up his invitation as he was practicing for his second round encounter. However, Murray had a chance to bow down to the Queen as she was present in the Royal Box as he crushed his opponent.
The Queen has visited Wimbledon four times in the past and lawn tennis holds a special place in her heart. She is the patron of the Club but more importantly, because her Father actually competed in the men’s doubles event in 1926. The Queen’s visit made the 2010 Championships more special.
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