2023-07-08 16:00:03
BarcelonaThe oldest tennis tournament in the world leaves no one indifferent. For some Wimbledon breathes tradition. For others, it is an archaic and outdated tournament in terms of its strict rules of behavior. After years of demands, female tennis players on the professional circuit have managed to get the English Grand Slam to modify its rigid dress code and allow participants to compete in underwear other than white.
One of the first tennis players to speak out was Russia’s Tatiana Golovin, who in 2007 showed up to both of her matches at Wimbledon wearing red tights under her skirt, something that had never been seen before moment and that broke one of Wimbledon’s oldest customs. His rebellion called into question that in the English tournament the grass must be green and it is mandatory to wear white.
That isolated case was accompanied by many critical voices with the lack of modernization of the tournament. The claim of the tennis players was very logical, that Wimbledon allowed the clothing of a dark garment under the skirt to alleviate the discomfort that a tennis player may have during the period of menstruation.
“It’s been such a relief. Last year I had my period during the tournament and it was very stressful. You wear your underwear underneath to help, but it’s still in the back of your mind. Sometimes I’d go to the bathroom just to check that there was nothing. I’m very glad that this is being talked about and that this decision has been made,” says American Cori Gauff.
The first tennis players to adopt the new rule were the Belarusian Victoria Azarenka, the Czech Linda Fruhvirtova and the American Peyton Stearns, who showed shorts black under the skirt. “All the girls are very happy with this decision because on the track, you’re not only competing against yourself, you’re also competing against your stress and your nerves. If you add even more stress, waiting for your period and if your skirt gets dirty it’s an additional problem you don’t want to think about,” says Russian Daria Kasatkina.
White will remain the predominant colour, that won’t change, but at the end of last year, the London club approved that they can add a piece of color under the skirt, in the form of tights, to ease their concern. “This small change I don’t think will spoil the tournament, but for us it is a big step forward,” admits Kasatkina.
Wimbledon is a tournament that takes its dress code very seriously. As specified in the tournament rules, there must be no “too much color” on the outfits and only one line of color is allowed around the neck, sleeves, pants or skirt and sneakers, as long as its thickness is not greater than one centimeter. The rules don’t just clash with tennis players. Roger Federer, Nick Kyrgios and Novak Djokovic are some of the men’s athletes who have received touches of attention in recent years.
During last year’s tournament there were protests at the gates of Wimbledon under the slogan “Address the code” (update the code). Golovin was remembered, against whom the authorities could do nothing more than to wish her to lose as soon as possible and to end what for them, in communicative terms, was a nightmare.
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