Tennis

About Tennis

Brief Overview of the Rules

Olympic tennis consists of events in men’s and women’s singles, and men’s, women’s and mixed doubles. Singles matches are played to the best of three sets with a standard tie-break in every set, including the final set.

OLYMPIC HISTORY

Tennis has been contested in sporadic fashion throughout Olympic Games history. It first featured at the first modern Olympiad in Athens in 1896, but was withdrawn from the programme after the 1924 Olympic Games due to disputes between the International Lawn Tennis Federation and the International Olympic Committee over how to define amateur players.

Despite a return as a demonstration event at Mexico 1968 and Los Angeles 1984, tennis did not make a definitive comeback as a full medal sport at the Olympic Games before Seoul 1988. Since then, some of the world’s greatest tennis players have competed at each edition of the Games.

New Zealand made its first appearance at the Stockholm 1912 Olympic Games and did not return until Seoul 1988.

Anthony Wilding OLY#6 was New Zealand’s first tennis player who played singles as part of Australasian team at Stockholm 1912 Olympic Games.

The first female to compete was Belinda Cordwell OLY#541 who played singles at the Seoul 1988 Olympic Games.

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