Philippe chatrier

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Roland Garros. By Richard Evans. The name Philippe Chatrier will be repeated often in the coming days, as people refer to the stadium at Roland Garros with a brand-new roof—one that was supposed to shelter 16, people in case of rain, rather than the 1, who will be allowed to huddle against the chill of a Parisian autumn. So who was he? A visionary who embodied the rare combination of commercial pragmatism and idealistic values. A man who changed the face of French tennis and, as president of the International Tennis Federation between and , influenced much of the tennis world. Who was Philippe Chatrier, namesake of Roland Garros' roofed court?

Philippe chatrier

Philippe Chatrier passed away 20 years ago this year. We take a look back at the life and actions of this ambassador for tennis. Philippe Chatrier was born in , the year that Roland-Garros stadium was built. Destined for a life in tennis, he started playing in Crowned French junior champion in and French No. With the publication of Tennis de France magazine in , he was able to express his opinion on several subjects, particularly the idea of setting up a tournament that would combine professional and amateur tennis. Philippe Chatrier was ambitious and a natural born leader. Always deeply committed to the tennis world, at the same time he was elected president of the International Tennis Federation in His greatest victory in this role was getting tennis back into the Seoul Olympics in , after a year hiatus. A visionary in all of his projects as president, Philippe Chatrier was keen for Roland-Garros to be awarded Grand Slam status. This required the stadium to be renovated, as it had become run-down over the years. Large-scale building works were launched in the early s and were only completed in with the new extension phase and the construction of Suzanne-Lenglen court.

The Court des Serres, renamed Court Simonne Mathieu, was opened in Marchphilippe chatrier, ready for the tournamentas was the rebuilt Court Chatrier, with the retractable roof completed in time for the tournament. When he got himself elected as president of the FFT inphilippe chatrier wereregistered tennis players in France and tennis clubs. Wikimedia Commons.

Not often is a sports stadium named after an administrator, but the Philippe Chatrier Court at the Stade Roland Garros is there because of the man whose name it carries, a man who was possibly the most influential tennis administrator of the last century. The stadium is made of concrete, steel and glass. Chatrier certainly had steel in his spine and he gazed through the glass with great perspicacity, but concrete was in no way reflective of his mind or his soul. The Frenchman was a moody, brooding, sensitive, inspiring and clever visionary. He changed the face of French tennis, and together with his great friend Jack Kramer, he left his mark on the international game. He was also an astute politician who knew how to deal with the little fiefdoms and jealousies that have always beleaguered the administration of the game in France and he knew how to deal with the French Government. Born on 2 February , Chatrier, small and quick, soon showed an aptitude for tennis in his youth and, after winning the French junior title, he was named a reserve player on the French Davis Cup squad, later becoming captain.

Roland Garros. By Richard Evans. The name Philippe Chatrier will be repeated often in the coming days, as people refer to the stadium at Roland Garros with a brand-new roof—one that was supposed to shelter 16, people in case of rain, rather than the 1, who will be allowed to huddle against the chill of a Parisian autumn. So who was he? A visionary who embodied the rare combination of commercial pragmatism and idealistic values. A man who changed the face of French tennis and, as president of the International Tennis Federation between and , influenced much of the tennis world.

Philippe chatrier

Philippe Chatrier, who has died at the age of 72, was a man of passion and complexity, whose visionary influence helped transform the world of professional tennis. First, as president of the French Tennis Federation, and later as leader of the international body, he brought a rare blend of pragmatic commercialism and idealistic values to a sport he played at a high standard himself. By the time Chatrier made his bid for power, he had been French junior champion, played at Wimbledon and been a member of the French Davis Cup squad. Such was his energy that he founded Tennis de France magazine while working as a sports editor for a Paris newspaper. In his spare time, he ran an old boys rugby team that played a Press XV on the eve of Five Nation internationals. He was also involved in the archaic world of tennis politics, soon realising that the old guard would have to go if any progress was to be made.

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So he went to his friend Marcel Bernard, who had won the first post-war Roland Garros title, and asked him to get himself elected President and hold the seat warm for three years. Rate this translation. His leadership, vision, and unwavering work ethic towards building tennis into a vibrant international sport place him in a small and elite category. But of even greater impact was his determination to get tennis re-instated as an Olympic sport after its removal from the Games in In December , the Paris Administrative Court ordered suspension of reclamation work involving the Auteuil botanical garden greenhouses. Read Edit View history. June The amateur game was nervous and at loggerheads with itself as the ATP was formed, with Kramer at its head at Forest Hills in The Independent. These major changes were what pushed the tournament onto the international stage.

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The surface was a state-of-the art solution, in , to the biggest problem with natural clay courts: poor drainage. Hours and Admission. He was president of the French Tennis Federation for 20 years, from to , and president of the International Tennis Federation for 14 years, from to Toggle limited content width. Contents move to sidebar hide. Getty Images There was so much more to Philippe than mere figures, but these give a quick snapshot of what his leadership meant. He immediately began a massive modernisation of tennis in France. The Frenchman was a moody, brooding, sensitive, inspiring and clever visionary. Athens Tennis Club Athens. Getty Images If Chatrier had a clear vision, that could not be said of the game as a whole in the early s. Wednesday 24 June - Lauriane Labes. Who was Philippe Chatrier, namesake of Roland Garros' roofed court?