Tennis at the Olympic Games: A 5 Minute History Lesson

Introduction

Tennis has had a chequered history at the Olympic Games. Its path throughout the Olympics has been marked by periods of inclusion, exclusion, and reintroduction. It has also been through much discussion about whether the sport is really relevant at the Games, based on whether or not the Olympics is the true pinnacle of the sport. That’s a discussion for another time. Here, we’re simply giving a quick rundown on the history of tennis at the Olympics, as well as the full medal list.

Early Years and Exclusion

Tennis was straight out of the blocks, and introduced as an Olympic sport at the inaugural modern Olympics in Athens in 1896. At that stage, the sport only had participation from a handful of countries, reflecting the sport’s limited global reach at the time. One of the most famous names in Women’s tennis, Suzanne Lenglen (who Court 1 at Roland Garros is named after), took out the gold medals in the singles, doubles, and mixed doubles at the Antwerp games in 1920. However, by 1924, during the Paris Olympics, tennis was facing some significant challenges. First and foremost, disagreements over amateur status, between the ITF, and IOC, which led to its removal from the Olympic program after that year.

Reintroduction to the Olympics

The absence of tennis from the Olympics lasted for over six decades. The push for its return began to gain momentum in the 1970s and 1980s, driven by the sport’s increasing global popularity and the professionalization of athletes.

In both 1968 and 1984, tennis was close to being re-instated, yet was chosen as a ‘demonstration sport’ only. In 1984 only athletes under the age of 21 were able to compete. The singles winners were Stefan Edberg of Sweden, and Steffi Graf of West Germany….a sign of what was to come on the ATP and WTA tours. The breakthrough came when the International Olympic Committee (IOC) decided to reintroduce tennis as a full medal sport in 1988, for the Seoul Olympics. This decision was influenced by the sport’s widespread appeal, the professional status of players, and the success of the demonstration event in Los Angeles four years earlier.

Modern Era of Olympic Tennis

Since its reintroduction, tennis has been a permanent fixture in the Summer Olympics, attracting top players from around the world. In 2004, 2008, and 2012, it was decided ranking points would be attached to the Olympic results, but that was discontinued from the 2016 Rio games. While there are still those that prefer to play for money and points, away from the games, it feels like there is more and more prestige in winning a tennis medal. The competition includes five events: men’s singles, women’s singles, men’s doubles, women’s doubles, and mixed doubles, which was added in 2012.

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Winners of Olympic Tennis Events

The following table lists the winners of tennis events at the Olympic Games across all years and events:

Paris 2024

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The lineup of the Paris 2024 games will include 22 of the top 30 men (17 of the top 20), while 21 of the top 30 women are entered. Novak Djokovic will be hoping he can fill the one gap in his tennis CV, while Andy Murray is playing his last ever tournament. Iga Swiatek will be the clear favourite on the women’s side, playing on what feels like her home court, of Roland Garros.

Tennis has a rich history at the Olympics, and there’s no doubt the athletes competing in Paris 2024, will put on quite a show. I can’t wait.

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