1996 Wimbledon Championships | |
---|---|
Date | 24 June – 7 July |
Edition | 110th |
Category | Grand Slam (ITF) |
Draw | 128S/64D/64XD |
Prize money | £6,465,910 |
Surface | Grass |
Location | Church Road SW19, Wimbledon, London, United Kingdom |
Venue | All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club |
Champions | |
Men's singles | |
![]() | |
Women's singles | |
![]() | |
Men's doubles | |
![]() ![]() | |
Women's doubles | |
![]() ![]() | |
Mixed doubles | |
![]() ![]() | |
Boys' singles | |
![]() | |
Girls' singles | |
![]() | |
Boys' doubles | |
![]() ![]() | |
Girls' doubles | |
![]() ![]() | |
Gentlemen's invitation doubles | |
![]() ![]() | |
Ladies' invitation doubles | |
![]() ![]() | |
Senior gentlemen's invitation doubles | |
![]() ![]() |
The 1996 Wimbledon Championships was a tennis tournament played on grass courts at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in Wimbledon, London in the United Kingdom. [1] [2] It was the 110th edition of the Wimbledon Championships and was held from 24 June to 7 July 1996.
When rain interrupted play on Centre Court on 3 July with a crowd that included Prince Michael of Kent, Princess Michael of Kent and actress Joanna Lumley, [3] Cliff Richard, who was watching from the royal box, was approached by court officials for an interview. They suggested that he sing a song or two to entertain the crowd. [4] With approval from his PR manager Richard proceeded to give an impromptu performance, starting with "Summer Holiday". [5]
The performance ran for twenty minutes and consisted of Richard's hits such as "Living Doll" and "Congratulations", as well as the Elvis Presley hit "All Shook Up". [5] Past tennis stars Virginia Wade, Martina Navratilova, Hana Mandlíková, Pam Shriver, Liz Smylie, Gigi Fernández and Conchita Martínez were in the Royal Box and proceeded to join in as background singers. [3] [5]
Richard was not aware that his performance was televised by the BBC, and after six songs presenter Des Lynam jokingly claimed "we'll probably get one hell of a bill." The performance made the front pages in many major British newspapers on the following day. Since a retractable roof was completed on Centre Court in 2009 such a performance is unlikely to happen again. [6]
During the entrance of the court staff for the Men's Singles final, the court was briefly invaded by a streaker. [7]
The total prize money for 1996 championships was £6,465,910. The winner of the men's title earned £392,500 while the women's singles champion earned £353,000. [8] [9]
Event | W | F | SF | QF | Round of 16 | Round of 32 | Round of 64 | Round of 128 |
Men's singles | £392,500 | |||||||
Women's singles | £353,000 | |||||||
Men's doubles * | £160,810 | — | ||||||
Women's doubles * | £139,040 | — | ||||||
Mixed doubles * | £68,280 | — |
* per team
Richard Krajicek defeated
MaliVai Washington, 6–3, 6–4, 6–3 [10]
Steffi Graf defeated
Arantxa Sánchez Vicario, 6–3, 7–5 [11]
Todd Woodbridge /
Mark Woodforde defeated
Byron Black /
Grant Connell, 4–6, 6–1, 6–3, 6–2 [12]
Martina Hingis /
Helena Suková defeated
Meredith McGrath /
Larisa Neiland, 5–7, 7–5, 6–1 [13]
Cyril Suk /
Helena Suková defeated
Mark Woodforde /
Larisa Neiland, 1–6, 6–3, 6–2 [14]
Vladimir Voltchkov defeated
Ivan Ljubičić, 3–6, 6–2, 6–3 [15]
Amélie Mauresmo defeated
Magüi Serna, 4–6, 6–3, 6–4 [16]
Daniele Bracciali /
Jocelyn Robichaud defeated
Damien Roberts /
Wesley Whitehouse, 6–2, 6–4 [17]
Olga Barabanschikova /
Amélie Mauresmo defeated
Lilia Osterloh /
Samantha Reeves, 5–7, 6–3, 6–1 [18]
Wojciech Fibak /
Tim Wilkison defeated
Pavel Složil /
Tomáš Šmíd, 6–2, 5–7, 6–1
Jo Durie /
Anne Smith defeated
Mima Jaušovec /
Yvonne Vermaak, 6–3, 6–2
John Alexander /
Phil Dent defeated
Marty Riessen /
Sherwood Stewart, 7–6, 6–2