Roland Garros 2024 MAY 26 – JUNE 9 First staged in 1891 as the Championnat de France, the French Open, played on the iconic red clay of Roland Garros, enthrals tennis fans with its breathtaking rallies and feats of physical endurance FLYING HIGH: Since 2019 debut, Polish star Iga Swiatek has won 28 of her 30 singles matches in Paris. Only Monica Seles and Chris Evert, with 29 wins apiece, have enjoyed more impressive starts in same time frame Swiatek: Clay court titles Roland Garros 2020, 2022, 2023 Rome 2021, 2022, 2024 Stuttgart 2022, 2023 Madrid 2024 77-10 Swiatek: Career clay court record Wins at Roland Garros (Open Era, women): Steffi Graf GER Matches W / L: 84 / 10 Chris Evert USA 72 / 6 Arantxa Sanchez ESP 72 / 13 Serena Williams USA 69 / 14 Conchita Martinez ESP 62 / 18 Steffi Graf (inset) tops winners’ table in Paris Coupe Suzanne Lenglen World No.1 Iga Swiatek Pre-eminent clay-court force in women’s game has already collected titles in Madrid and Rome this season, overcoming rival Aryna Sabalenka in both finals KING OF CLAY: Rafael Nadal (below) holds astonishing record at Roland Garros – winning 14 singles titles from his debut in 2005 to most recent triumph in 2022 Wins at Roland Garros (Open Era, men): Rafael Nadal ESP Matches W / L: 112 / 3 Novak Djokovic SRB 92 / 16 Roger Federer SUI 73 / 17 Guillermo Vilas ARG 57 / 17 Ivan Lendl CZE 53 / 12 Nadal’s 14 French Open titles – out of haul of 22 Grand Slam wins – holds record for most singles trophies at any individual major tournament Titles at single Grand Slam (Open Era, men): Australian Open Djokovic 10 Roland Garros Nadal 14 Wimbledon Federer 8 U.S. Open 5 Three players: J. Connors, P. Sampras, R. Federer Coupe des Mousquetaires Surface Clay court absorbs pace of ball, producing higher bounce with more spin, leading to longer, more tactical rallies ROLAND GARROS COMPOSITION Playing surface: Red brick dust Improves ball visibility – slippery top layer allows players to slide into shots Linking layer Crushed white limestone Cushion Clinker (coal residue) Loose aggregation At least 30cm of crushed gravel for stability Foundation Larger stones for drainage Slow surface increases duration of points, testing stamina and physicality Venue Court Simonne Mathieu 5,000-seater sunken arena Avenue Gordon Bennett Orangery Public services and gourmet restaurant Place des Mousquetaires Court Suzanne Lenglen Capacity: 10,000 2024: Retractable roof installed ahead of Paris Olympics Fonds des Princes Sunken 2,200-seater court Roland Garros Village Administration, reception areas and panoramic terraces Court Suzanne Lenglen Court Philippe Chatrier Capacity: 15,000 Retractable roof completed in 2020. Closes in 15 minutes, allowing all-weather play and night sessions Serres d’Auteuil Timeline 1891: Inaugural French Clay-Court Championships, reserved exclusively for members of French tennis clubs. Tournament alternates between three venues in early years 1925: French Open born when tournament opens to international competition. French stars, including six-time champion Suzanne Lenglen (right), still dominate 1928: Court complex opens in Paris. Name honours Roland Garros, pioneer aviator killed in World War I 1932: Four “Mousquetaires” – René Lacoste, Jean Borotra, Henri Cochet and Jacques Brugnon (below) – bow out after sharing 10 titles in decade of dominance 1968: Hosts first Grand Slam of Open Era – Ken Rosewall (AUS) and Nancy Richey (USA) are champions 1973: Margaret Court wins then record 13th Paris title, comprising five singles and eight doubles 1974-86: Tennis legends Björn Borg and Chris Evert establish new era of clay court superiority 1979: Five new courts bring total to 10 – further expansions follow in 1986 and 1994 2000: Mary Pierce (right) is most recent French singles champion 2018-20: Major expansion includes complete demolition and rebuild of 90-year-old Court Philippe Chatrier to accommodate retractable roof Roll call of champions MOST CHAMPIONSHIPS (OPEN ERA) 2005-08, 2010-14, 2017-20, 2022 Rafael Nadal ESP 14 7 Chris Evert USA 1974, 75, 78, 79, 80, 81 1974, 75, 79, 80, 83, 85, 86 Bjorn Borg SWE 6 6 Steffi Graf GER 1987, 88, 93, 95, 96, 99 1982, 85, 88 Mats Wilander SWE 3 4 Justine Henin BEL 2003, 05, 06, 07 1984, 86, 87 Ivan Lendl CZE 3 3 Five players: 1997, 2000, 01 Gustavo Kuerten BRA 3 M. Court*, A. Sanchez, M. Seles, 2016, 21, 23 Novak Djokovic SRB 3 S. Williams, I. Swiatek Chris Evert Seven-time champion at Roland Garros. First two trophies won during 125-match winning streak on clay (1973-79), Open Era record on single surface for any player, male or female *Plus 2 in pre-Open era Pictures: Getty Images Sources: Roland Garros, ATP, WTA © GRAPHIC NEWS