Wimbledon Stories: Remembering Wimbledon 2023

Welcome everyone ?? ??

This is the 17th edition of the “Wimbledon Stories by Edem Spio” newsletter. Since April 2023, I've been sharing stories of the many aspects of the Greatest Tennis Grand Slam in the world,?Wimbledon. The newsletter started as a build up to this year’s The Championships. This is the final article for the season. I took a break from the newsletter last week. However, I felt I did not do justice to my audience as I have not explained - in detail - why Wimbledon is my favourite Grand Slam. As always, for fellow Tennis lovers as myself, I hope your love and appreciation for Wimbledon has grown this year and will continue for the years ahead. For non-tennis fans, I hope you have enjoyed the newsletter. See you in April 2024.

P.S. As you can clearly tell (from the newsletter's photo), I am a massive Federer fan. I’ve been following him actively since childhood and he’s one of the inspirations behind this newsletter - let him know! Roger is and will always be the Tennis GOAT!

Let’s begin!

THE BACKSTORY

It is a known fact amongst the followers of this newsletter that Wimbledon 2023 has left a massive mark and twinkling in my eye. My Poster Boy and Champion Carlos Alcaraz made me proud. However, only a few know why I'm obsessed with the "Tennis in an English Garden". Well, here we go....

I first encountered tennis in 2003. My father was very concentrated on a match which Federer was dominating. Mind you, my love for my top 4 favourite sports (football, tennis, basketball and Athletics) was developed due to direct influence from my dad. He's a fellow sports lover and Wimbledon is his favourite sporting event. The way my dad spoke about Roger fascinated me so much I immediately became a fan. That was when I experienced "love at first sight" for Wimbledon 's "darling boy".

I came from a home where I was privileged enough to actively participate in sports during my childhood. I actively participated in football, tennis, some athletics and swimming activities via my school and local sports club. I always looked forward to playing tennis over the weekend at Ikoyi Club. Dad got my siblings and I white multiple pairs of white tennis shirts, shorts and shoes. At that age, I dreamt of emulating Roger.

As I've aged and my understanding of tennis, players, their playing style and the general rules of the game, I've been actively hooked year-in-year out. One of my fondest memories I'll never forget is having had the chance to see my GOAT lift Wimbledon 5 times in a row as well as the Men's Champion with the most Wimbledon titles.

In August 2013, my dad bought the 3rd Edition of Wimbledon: The Official History. One can just imagine how overly excited I was. My biology teacher during high school was a huge tennis and Wimbledon fan as well. I remember taking the book to school to discuss the interesting wins, loses, memories and records in there.

2017 is by far my forever favourite Wimbledon. I watched Federer lift his 8th and Wimbledon with tears in my eyes. Little did I know that it'll be his last. For all Federer fans out there, we still mourn for Roger after what he had to experience in the final against Djokovic in 2019. Sports can be so cruel sometimes. One will be shocked to know that Federer lost after being two Championship Points ahead in the final set. It was at that moment that I knew I would never support Djokovic in any tournament. 2021 was yet another tough pill to swallow. I am one of the few people to admit that I have supported Nick Kyrgios through thick and thin since he went pro. I still believe that he will win Wimbledon some day in the near future. After such a fantastic run in 2021, his demons struck again. Nonetheless, I see it as progress. He will return stronger.

For the first time in 6 years, my summer has been amazing thanks to Wimbledon and Carlos Alcaraz. It has been so good that I completed a research on tennis in Africa titled "Championship Point: Transforming Tennis in Africa". Check the feature section of my profile for a copy of it. Long may this joy continue. I look forward to a great US Open in a few weeks.

THE STORY OF WIMBLEDON 2023

For weeks now I've been sharing bite sized stories of my favourite Grand Slam. Below is the official story of Wimbledon 2023 as per the All England Lawn Tennis & Croquet Club. Enjoy!

PLAY YOUR WAY TO WIMBLEDON

Anyone who knows me knows that I'm always in favour of and supporting youth participation in sports for both fitness and career purposes. This year's success in the Boy's & Girl's Championship event has lead to the realisation that should more be done to grow tennis in the UK, much more superstars and top professionals can come through the ranks and dominate the game. The AELTC will be hosting an expanded "Play Your Way to Wimbledon Finals". According to the article on the Wimbledon website, "aspiring tennis players are set to play on Wimbledon's courts for the national finals of Play Your Way to Wimbledon, powered by Vodafone, featuring new categories for 2023".

This is truly a great initiative to back and it's impressive to see Wimbledon taking an increased role in it. Hopefully, in the near future, Wimbledon alongside other top tennis organisation can invest into growing tennis internationally, especially in Africa.

The article says: "The action will commence on Sunday 6 August with the first round of the girls’ and boys’ 14U singles competition; followed by the girls’ and boys’ 18U doubles on Tuesday 8 August; the adults’ doubles beginning Wednesday 9 August; and the learning disability, visually impaired and wheelchair tennis categories taking to the courts from Friday 11 August. Next week’s event is the final stage of Play Your Way to Wimbledon, powered by Vodafone, with this year’s competition already engaging 848 local venues and delivering more than 14,00 playing opportunities, including the new pathways for additional age groups and disability categories, which Vodafone is proud to support."

Now that is impact! Your favourite Grand Slam could never! Thank you to all subscribers of the "Wimbledon Stories by Edem Spio" newsletter. It was a pleasure serving you in 2023. We meet again in 2024!

Wishing you a Championship Year ahead!