What is wheelchair tennis?
Wheelchair tennis is tennis played by athletes n special wheelchairs, adapted to allow them to swivel and move at speed. Played on a regulation tennis court, it can be either singles or doubles. The only difference in the rules is that wheelchair tennis players can let the ball bounce twice, instead of once.
When did wheelchair tennis begin?
Wheelchair tennis officially began in 1976 after an American, Brad Parks, was left paralysed from the hips down after a skiing accident in Utah. Together with wheelchair athlete Jeff Minnebraker, Parks formulated an idea. “I knew I had to make the best of the situation. I started thinking, ‘I wonder if you can play tennis in a wheelchair?’” he told the International Tennis Hall of Fame.
Are there different categories within wheelchair tennis?
Yes. Wheelchair tennis is split into men’s and women’s events, with two distinct categories; open and quads. The open category is for players who have a “permanent impairment” of one or both legs, but with “normal arm function” of the playing arm. Quads is for players who have “additional restrictions in the playing arm”, which makes it harder for them to move the chair and use the racket.
Is there a wheelchair tennis tour?
Yes. The first wheelchair tournament was played in May 1977, in Los Angeles, with 20 competitors. Brad Parks helped form a 10-tournament Tour in the United States. The first international tournament was held in Paris in 1983 and a European tour began in 1984. In 1992, the ITF Wheelchair Tour began, with 11 tournaments worldwide. Today, the Uniqlo Wheelchair Tennis Tour contains more than 160 tournaments in 40 countries, with $3 million in prize money.
Is wheelchair tennis played at the Paralympics?
Yes. Wheelchair tennis was a demonstration event at the 1988 Olympic Games, in Seoul, South Korea. Four years later, it was officially adopted as an Olympic sport in the 1992 Barcelona Paralympics. Initially, the event just had an “open” class, but quads were included in Athens in 2004.
Is wheelchair tennis played at grand slam events?
Yes. The first grand slam event to adopt singles events in wheelchair tennis was the Australian Open, in 2002. Wheelchair events were played alongside able-bodied events for the first time. Initially called the Wheelchair Classic 8s, the events were both won by Dutch athletes; Robin Ammerlaan won the men’s competition while Esther Vergeer won the women’s. The US Open held its first wheelchair singles event in 2005 and the French Open followed suit in 2007. Wimbledon, which had a doubles event from 2005 but had claimed singles was too difficult on grass, eventually added a singles event in 2016.
Who is the most successful wheelchair tennis player of all time?
Dutchwoman Esther Vergeer is the most successful player in history. Vergeer dominated the women’s Tour, winning 43 major titles - 21 in singles and 22 in doubles - as well as seven gold medals at the Paralympics, between 2000 and 2012. In her career, Vergeer won 136 titles worldwide and a record 700 matches. From January 2003 until her retirement in 2013, she went unbeaten, winning 120 events and a total of 470 matches, winning 95 of them 6-0, 6-0. Another Dutchwoman, the current No 1, Diede Groot, is close behind with 40 grand slam titles, including 22 in singles.
Who is the most successful male player of all time?
Shingo Kunieda of Japan. Kunieda won 28 grand slam singles titles – more than anyone else – between 2007 and 2022. He also won four paralympic gold medals, the only man to retain his title, winning in 2008 and 2012 before winning again on home soil in 2021, in the delayed Tokyo Games. Kunieda ended his career with 699 match wins, one behind Vergeer.
Who are the current world No 1 players?
Tokito Oda of Japan is the No 1 in men’s singles, while Diede de Groot is the No 1 in the women’s rankings.
What is the longest ever wheelchair tennis match?
The longest ever match in wheelchair tennis happened at the Paralympics in Rio de Janeiro in 2016. In the bronze medal match, in the quads event, Andy Lapthorne and Jamie Burdekin of Great Britain beat Itai Erenib and Shraga Weinberg of Israel3-6, 6-4, 7-6 (2) after four hours, 25 minutes.
What do wheelchair players call themselves?
Wheelies. For obvious reasons.
