Trophy Life

When all is said and done, these two items are what the singles combatants are here for.

The two trophies are markedly different to eachother, but carry the same import for the person who eventually hoists one of them aloft to the tumultuous applause of the Centre Court faithful. They mark triumph, victory for the holder who has trodden an arduous path littered with the pride and reputations of their vanquished opponents. They are treasure, gold and silver, and their polished (though static) performance mirrors that of the winner, a fitting reward for effort and achievement.

The winner of the Gentlemen's Singles is presented with a cup of gilt and silver, topped with an ornately sculpted pineapple. The handles rise in practical yet mellifluous curves from small wing-helmeted heads at their base, joining the body of the cup with a circular flourish just below the lid. The trophy is accented with convex mouldings (ovolo), and stands a millimetre shy of 47cm tall. In 1949 F.R. Schroeder was the first winner of this trophy to be presented with a smaller replica (just over 21.5cm tall) to take away, a tradition that continues to this day.

The Ladies' Champion receives a partly guilded sterling silver salver, which sometimes goes by the name of the 'Rosewater Dish', a smidgin over 47.5cm in diameter. It is ornate, the ovolo mouldings, renaissance strapwork and foliate motifs framing the mythological themes that decorate the central area. The very centre is adorned with Temperance (Sophrosyne?), surrounded by four classical gods, and the outer rim is the domain of Minerva who oversees the seven Liberal Arts. The salver is far more busy and detailed than the Gentlemen's trophy, but no less a prize for that. The Ladies' champion gets a small replica too, 20.3cm in diameter, which should be big enough to stack a few Ferrero Rochers on.

I was told about the media shoot a couple of days before hand, and yesterday morning I and a colleague Andy Burns went along. It was a bit of a free-for-all, but thankfully organized so that each media team got a few minutes in front of the trophies that sat on a small table on the edge of the grass on Centre Court. When it was our turn I seized the moment and leant in close enough for the heat of my breath to raise a sweat on the cold metal, and shot a few close-ups. Having only ever seen them from afar, or behind the glass that protects them whilst they are on display in the club museum, it was cool to be within touching distance of these venerable pieces of tennis history and appreciate the detail in each. You can learn more about the trophies here.

Below are a few of the photos I took.






- The Gentlemen's Singles trophy, and the Ladies' Singles Salver.
- The centre of the salver, showing the goddess of Temperance.
- A close up of the back of the salver, where winners' names are engraved (having run out of room on the front).






- The stand for the silver and gilt salver.
- Virginia Wade's name marks her triumph in 1977.
- The legend that appears on the Gentlemen's Singles trophy.








- One of the two ladies looking after the trophies.
- The salver.
- The ornate pineapple that sits atop the Gentlemen's Singles trophy.
- The Gentlemen's Singles trophy sits patiently whilst the media crews scrum down. The colours seemed to change as the light, and angle of view, changed.






- The collected media crews during the trophy shoot.
- Security guards, freshly pressed and trained, walk the path between the Broadcast Centre.
- There are a lot of them employed here during the event.








- A close up of a line marking machine mechanism.
- Sharapova practises on Court 14. She didn't seem overly happy with her performance.
- A stack of her racquets lie at the side of the court, waiting for their turn to be used in anger.

Anywhere but here...

The band Raging Slab are a blast from my past, and right now I am listening to their track 'Anywhere But Here'. It prompts me to think of two little birds with whom I have recently become acquainted. Over the last week two fledgling blackbirds have been 'trapped' in the open air corridor between offices in the basement of the Broadcast Centre here at the club. I can only assume that they had attempted their first flight from the nest and ended up down here, not strong enough on the wing yet to be able to fly back out again. No doubt, they'd rather be anywhere but here...

Birds rely one or both parents for their food during the early part of their lives. The parents have toiled tirelessly to bring them worms, berries and insects, bulking out their ruffled feathered bodies, preparing them for the great escape. One of the two was more vocal than its sibling, and so got more food, and by Thursday it had managed to fly to the top of an open door, then on and up, up, up, its wings a beating blur, straining, touch and go as to whether it would make it to the railings on the wall above the corridor. I was delighted to watch it reach its goal, and then immediately saddened as I realized that it meant the other was now on its own, separated, without the warm familiarity of its brother/sister to keep it company. The parents didn't abandon it though, and made many swooping feed runs stopping only to deliver the titbit before zooming up and out to find more sustenance for their little one.

When I came in yesterday morning it had gone, thankfully, and the whole family could go scavenging on the short grass of the courts (I spied all four on Court 14 just before Sharapova came on to practise).






Preparation of the grounds and all that lies within carried on a pace, and although not an actual life or death thing, it could be seen as such in respect of the tournament - without all the hard work of hundreds of people, the club would be devoid of the finery and trappings that dress it for the two weeks ahead. The tournament starts tomorrow, and will wait for no one, fledgling or otherwise. Here are a few shots I have taken whilst taking a break from the computer screen...






- Centre Court.
- Colour tests being performed on the big screen on Centre Court.
- One of the outside broadcast trucks parked up behind the Broadcast Centre, as seen through a glass wall.






- Warning signs on a door under the new Court 2 - you need to be a little brave to enter it seems. I wonder why the first one is in bold type. Is it because that is how most people hurt themselves, and consequently the powers that be felt it a good idea to slightly push the point?
- Chairs stacked together waiting to be assigned to their tables.
- A dirty window under the old Court 2.








- I think they are testing the density of the grass, i.e., how many blades per centimetre. I must check that.
- A progamme seller's booth is washed down ready for Monday.
- Ah, a tennis player! Actually, very possibly the best and most famous one currently. Federer knocks a ball about on Court 14.