10 weird Wimbledon running facts
Wimbledon, the world's oldest tennis tournament, gets underway Monday and features two prominent Canadians, Genie Bouchard and Milos Raonic.
To celebrate Eugenie Bouchard and Milos Raonic competing at Wimbledon, which began today, we picked out some of the coolest running-related tennis facts. Wimbledon is the world’s oldest tennis tournament and takes place annually in London.
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1) During a match, approximately 48% of running is done sideways.
2) On average, players run about 8-10m per point.
3) It is not uncommon for players to run more than 5K in a five-set match.
4) In the longest tennis match ever played, which was between John Isner and Nicholas Mahut during Wimbledon 2010, each player ran approximately 9.6K.
5) There can be discrepancies in the amount each player runs based on his on her style of play. For example, in 2007, when Novak Djokovic triumphed over Radek Stepanek, the latter ran approximately 8K, while Djokovic ran 5.6K.
6) The average men’s tennis shoe weighs approximately 12-13 oz. The weight of a track spike is approximately 6 oz.
7) The length of a tennis court is 23.77m and the width (for singles) is 8.23m.
8) The most common injuries are the same in running and tennis, such as shin splints, stress fractures and patellar strains.
9)Â Many tennis players rely on distance running to stay in cardiovascular shape and to ensure they have the stamina to last through long matches. Tennis specific training relies more heavily on sprints and agility drills. See how Roger Federer incorporates running into his training regime.
10) Different tennis courts are made of different materials, such as clay, concrete or grass. Wimbledon is played on grass courts, which is easier on players joints. Different players excel on different surfaces, just as some runners may perform better on trails than the track or roads.
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Bouchard begins the tournament on Tuesday while Milos Raonic won his first round match up on Monday as first round action is underway. Raonic covered 1,113.5 metres during his Monday game against Pablo Carreno Busta.
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