LITTLE ROCK — Players take bow for queen
Queen Elizabeth II made her first appearance at Wimbledon in 33 years Thursday.
Wearing a white dress, a bright turquoise coat and matching hat, the 84-year-old queen braved scorching temperatures as she greeted onlookers and met former champions before greeting the tournament’s top seeds.
Smiling widely, defending champion Serena Williams took a deep curtsy as she met the queen.
Her sister Venus Williams, who was wearing a glamorous mauve dress, also appeared to curtsy as she was introduced to the monarch.
Although in decades past, the tennis club maintained a tradition of a bow or curtsy to royal attendants, that practice was dropped in 2003. Still, many indulged the monarch Thursday.
The last time the queen visitedin 1977, she presented Virginia Wade with the ladies’ singles championship. No Briton has won a singles title since.
Although the monarch isn’t known to have a particularly strong personal interest in tennis, the royal association with Wimbledon spans more than 100 years.
The queen’s grandfather, King George V, became patron of the All England Club in 1910, and the tradition has been maintained since.
The queen’s only other visits before 1977 were in 1957 and 1962. Nothing to it
The Wimbledon umpire who presided over the longest match in tennis history said he was so enthralled by the epic struggle that he never felt tired.
Mohamed Lahyani, 44, of Sweden spent 11 hours, 5 minutes over three days in the umpire’s chair before declaring victory for John Isner over Nicolas Mahut in their first-round match. The fifthset score was 70-68.
“I didn’t get a chance to feel tired,” Lahyani said. “I was gripped by the amazing match and my concentration stayed good. I owed that to the players.
Their stamina was breathtaking and their behavior exceptional.”
After the match, Lahyani received a crystal bowl, a Wimbledon tie and silver cufflinks to mark the occasion.
“When you are so focused, and every point feels like a match point, you just don’t even think about eating or needing the bathroom,” said Lahyani, who lives in Spain.
The longest match that he officiated previously lasted 5 1 /2 hours.
“It has been quite amazing to be involved with such an extraordinary match,” Lahyani said. “I can’t imagine seeing another one like it in my lifetime.” The buzz
Count former President Bill Clinton among the fans of the vuvuzela.
Clinton said the swarm-ofbees sound from the plastic horns at the World Cup in South Africa “drove him nuts” when he watched the United States’ first game on television. Now that he’s heard them in person, though, he thinks they’re wonderful.
“I love them,” he said. “What I want to know is, when they do it all game long, surely you’ve noticed they seem to get into patterns or rhythms, but there doesn’t seem to be a conductor anywhere. Nobody seems to have a music sheet. But I swear they were playing together.
“I don’t know how it happens.
Does anybody know how it happens?”
Clinton said he planned to pick up one of the horns before he leaves. But only for himself, he promised.
“If I buy one for my niece and nephews,” he said, “I may never be spoken to again.”Quote of the day
“When you come out
and play a match like this, in an atmosphere like this, you don’t feel
tired really out there, even though that’s
exactly what we both were.” John Isner after he beat Nicolas Mahut 6-4, 3-6, 6-7 (7), 7-6 (3), 70-68 at Wimbledon
Sports, Pages 20 on 06/25/2010