2010/07/09

This Day in History July 9…歷史上的今天 7月9日…

Just like many other greats, The Championships, Wimbledon started out small. This tennis tournament was first held on this date in 1877. At that time, Wimbledon was a small suburb of London, and tennis matches were still played on lawns. The competition was hosted by the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club. This club also created a full list of game rules to be followed during play. That first year, there was only one event-Gentlemen’s Singles. Twenty-two amateur players competed in the tournament, and Spencer Gore won the final match to become the very first Wimbledon tennis champion.

歷史上的今天 7月9日…

就如同許多偉大的事物一樣,溫布頓網球錦標賽也是從小處發跡(The Championships, Wimbledon為溫布頓網球賽的英文正式名稱)。這項網球錦標賽於1877的今天首度舉辦。在當時,溫布頓不過是倫敦市的一個小小郊區,而網球賽也還 是在草坪上進行的。這項賽事是由全英草地網球和槌球俱樂部所主辦,而此俱樂部也制定了一整套在比賽時必須遵守的規則。賽事的第一年只有一個比賽項目--男 子單打。22位業餘球員在錦標賽中一爭高下,最後由史賓賽.高爾贏得決賽,成為有史以來第一位溫布頓冠軍。

知識大補帖

溫布頓是網球四大滿貫賽(Grand Slam)中歷史最悠久的一項(圖為台灣網球選手盧彥勳,在本屆溫布頓擊敗美國選手晉級前八強,資料照片),另外,其他三項賽事依序為:美國網球公開賽 (the US Open)、法國網球公開賽(the French Open)及澳洲網球公開賽(the Australian Open)。四大賽所使用的比賽場地也不盡相同,溫布頓是草地球場(grass court),法網是紅土球場(clay court),美網和澳網則是硬地球場(hard court)。

單字片語

˙tournament n.錦標賽
˙suburb n.(城鎮的)郊區,近郊
例:John lives in the suburbs of Taipei because he can’t afford to live downtown.(約翰住在台北郊區,因為他負擔不起住在市中心。)
˙lawn n.(草修剪得很短的)草地,草坪
˙host vt.主辦;主持
例:Brazil will host the 2014 FIFA World Cup.(巴西將主辦2014年的世足賽。)
˙croquet n.槌球遊戲
˙singles n.單打比賽
˙doubles n.雙打比賽
˙amateur a.業餘的,非職業的

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