The ‘Ubiquitous Apostle of International Play’, Wilberforce Vaughan Eaves: The Forgotten Internationalist of Lawn Tennis

In the context of sustained imperial dominance during the late Victorian era, foreigners perceived British playing styles, methods and approaches to lawn tennis as ‘blueprints’ for aspiring players. Those seeking to learn the game were largely dependent on observing skilled performers, however before the mid-1890s, most of the best British players declined to venture to Australasia and America, perceiving the opposition as inferior and their championships unworthy of their participation. Moreover, while British-trained coaching-professionals – widely considered the world’s best – offered instruction in a small number of clubs, they also rarely ventured outside of Europe. Alongside these barriers, the parochial and ethnocentric Lawn Tennis Association was less than proactive in their approaches to fostering international relations. One man, however, Dr Wilberforce Vaughan Eaves, did more for the internationalization of the sport than anyone else during this period, travelling extensively in America, South Africa and Australasia, demonstrating his skills, offering instruction and advising officials. Consequently, he helped develop the sport’s international character, laying the foundations for the Davis Cup, helping to foster Anglo-Australasian and Anglo-American relations, and hastening the development of foreign players, particularly in Australasia. This paper assesses the notable contributions of a player, coach and diplomat who has been largely ignored.     

‘The old days of amateurism are over’: the Samaranch revolution and the return of Olympic tennis

Tennis featured in every Olympics from 1896 to 1924, after which disagreements between the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the International Lawn Tennis Federation (ILTF) on matters pertaining to organisational control and the amateur eligibility of players led to tennis being removed from the Olympic Games as a full-medal event until the 1988 Seoul Olympics. This paper traces the steps of the sport’s reinstatement, from when efforts commenced in the 1950s, setting this development in the contexts of: broader political movements, shifting IOC leadership, burgeoning commercialisation of Olympic sport, the concomitant push for professionalisation and the declining influence of amateur ideals within both the Olympic movement and international tennis. Under the leadership of the amateur stalwart Avery Brundage, the IOC stymied attempts to facilitate tennis’s re-entry, challenging both the ILTF on failing to deal with widespread ‘sham-amateur’ practices and the avaricious promoters luring amateur players toward the professional ranks. Brundage and the IOC also strongly condemned the move to ‘open’ tennis and an acceptance of full-blown professionalism. Only a change in leadership, firstly with Lord Killanin and then the progressive reformer Juan Antonio Samaranch, did the IOC recognise the value of tennis within the Olympic movement, which by then had itself become increasingly money-oriented.     

The ‘ghosts’ of lawn tennis past: exploring the forgotten lives of early working-class coaching-professionals

This article examines the lives of late-nineteenth and early-twentieth-century lawn tennis coaching-professionals, notably Tom Burke, Harry Cowdrey, Charles Haggett and George Kerr. These men, considered equally if not more gifted than the first-ranked amateur players of the period, have received scant attention or recognition, either as ‘expert’ players or for their role as coaches/instructors within the ‘amateur’ game. Ostensibly, these working-class boys/men sought employment in clubs, as ball-boys, groundskeepers, stringers and instructors, but, being immediately classified as ‘professionals’, were subsequently marginalised within clubs and barred from amateur competitions. Few outside of the club environs encountered them, few observed or learned of their skills, and fewer still reported their exploits. While many of the top amateur players of the period recognised the need for coaching-professionals, the British Lawn Tennis Association (LTA) was intransigent. They staunchly refused to sanction professional competitions in Britain, fearing they would provide a pathway away from amateurism, and propel the amateur to seek remuneration from their tennis. Coaching-professionals had little choice but to remain as ‘servants’ within their clubs, confined by the rigid class system and unyielding amateur ethos. Hitherto largely ignored within lawn tennis historiography, these men are the ‘ghosts’ of lawn tennis past.     

Tournament structure and nations' success in women's professional tennis

Abstract

The relationship between domestic professional tournament structure in women's tennis and the subsequent professional ranking success of a nation's female players is examined. The 2003 women's professional tennis tournament calendar provided the distribution of events in 33 countries. Criteria used to classify nations' success in women's professional tennis were as follows: number of players with Women's Tennis Association (WTA) points, number of players with Top 200 rankings, and the combined WTA ranking of a nation's Top 5 female players. Pearson product – moment correlations were performed between the number of tournaments and the three criteria. Considerable variation was observed in the number of events organized between nations (USA, n = 56; Thailand, n = 3). All countries had internationally ranked female players, and 24 nations had players ranked in the Top 200. Results revealed relationships between a nation's number of women's professional events and both that nation's number of professionally ranked players (r = 0.60; P < 0.01) and Top 200 players (r = 0.60; P < 0.01), as well as the combined ranking of their Top 5 players (r = ?0.52; P < 0.01). While a similar association was found between the number of professional events and players ranked in the men's game, there was no significant correlation between events held and the combined standing of nations' best five ranked players. Governing bodies and national associations in tennis should consider the provision of professional, domestic competition as key to the development of female tennis players.     

“快易网球”教学理念与方法在高校网球教学中的应用研究

"快易网球"是国际网球组织对网球教学经验进行研究分析以及总结的基础上,增加了一些趣味性比较强的创新元素,也是一种相对科学和创新性的教学方法。本文以我国高校网球教学的现实状况及其存在的问题为入手点,对"快易网球"在高校网球教学课堂上的运用策略进行了分析,旨在为我国高校网球教育教学水平的提升奠定坚实基础。     

An examination of the importance of performances in youth and junior competition as an indicator of later success in tennis

Talent identification at a young age is deemed essential for many national sporting organisations to increase the chances of success for their players on the international stage. Talent identification methods can be imprecise and national tennis associations and coaches often identify talent based on performances at youth tournaments and junior rankings. However, not much is known about the relationship between the international competition performances of young tennis players and later success. This relationship is explored in this study using comparisons based on: (a) the results of 3521 players at U14 youth tournaments; (b) the rankings of 377 junior players (U18) by the International Tennis Federation; (c) the rankings of 727 professional male players by the Association of Tennis Professionals; and (d) the rankings of 779 professional players by the Women's Tennis Association. Junior performances (U18) and performances at youth tournaments (U14) appear to have a low success rate in predicting later success. No distinct age was found at which players should start to perform in order to be successful at the professional level. It is concluded that even though good performances at young ages increase athletes’ chances to become elite players, they are not a precondition for achieving later success. Therefore, this study informs talent scouts, sport development officers, coaches and high performance managers of the role that performances at international youth competitions may play in talent identification in tennis.     

Grass Roots: The Development of Tennis in Britain, 1918–1978

Most research on British tennis has focused on social exclusion at the tennis club, on its middle-class image, and on the ‘shamateurism’ of the pre-1968 era. This paper will chart the development of the sport at grass-roots level. It will demonstrate that tennis in the workplace and public parks allowed lower income families to play and that significant numbers did so in less formal settings than those overseen by regional Lawn Tennis Associations. It will suggest that a concentration on the wealthy south-east of England has distorted our impression of the sport itself and the ‘average’ club. Evidence from club histories, official handbooks, company archives and detailed local studies presents a very different picture from that of the suburban ‘garden party’.     

Effects of Lawn Tennis Association mini tennis as task constraints on children’s match-play characteristics

The Lawn Tennis Association’s mini tennis (MT) is a modified version of tennis consisting of progressive stages; however, there have been few attempts to evaluate how MT might shape performance behaviours. Here, we examine effects of playing MT on the emergence of children’s match-play behaviours in 48 junior tennis players. Performance in 1010 match-play points were filmed and coded across 4 tennis stages (MT Red, MT Orange, MT Green and Full Ball), using a notational analysis system. Recorded performance variables included rally length, first serve percentage and shot type, for the purpose of analysing inter-stage comparisons. Results showed a series of specific adaptations to playing characteristics across the stages, including rally length, shot variety and serve success. MT Red rallies (7.36 ± 6.06) were longer than Full Ball rallies (3.83 ± 2.40), and a higher percentage of forehands were played at MT Red (66.40 ± 8.49%) than at Full Ball stage (45.96 ± 6.47%). Findings suggested that MT stages can afford children more opportunities to develop their skills and elicit different match-play characteristics than Full Ball task constraints. Coaches, therefore, should consider the nature of emergent adaptations when designing practice environments to facilitate learning in young tennis players.     

Rivalries: China,Japan and South Korea – Memory,Modernity, Politics,Geopolitics – and Sport

Sport is an effective modern means for revealing a country's political preoccupations and geopolitical concerns. For China, Japan and South Korea, the pre-eminent countries in the recent Asian Games, sport has become a sharp tool for promoting nationalism and national identity. There is a history of bitter rivalry between these countries, not least, due to Japan's occupation of Korea and the Second Sino-Japanese War, the largest Asian war in the twentieth century. Consequently, a prominent characteristic of Korean and Chinese nationalism is anti-Japanese antipathy. This essay examines China–Japan–Korea rivalry through global sports events hosted in Asia during the past decade cumulating in the Guangzhou Asian Games. Here, the focus is on the use of these events as manifestations of resentment and revenge arising out of historic rivalries. This use may well grow in intensity as these nations grow in wealth, confidence and power as the EAST ASIAN EPOCH comes closer. This essay is the first to draw attention to the tripartite politics of sport as confrontation in the region's past, present and future.     

两届澳网李娜发球技术运用分析及对策研究

本文运用文献资料调研、录像解析以及数理统计等研究方法,对我国女子网球选手李娜在2012、2013两届澳大利亚网球公开赛中发球技术运用情况进行了分析.研究结果表明：从两届比赛来看,李娜的发球技术运用趋向攻击性,各项发球方面的技术统计都表明其发球技战术运用的进步,这是李娜能在2013年澳网再次取得亚军成绩的主要原因.     

中外优秀女子网球运动员单打发球技战术特征的对比分析

运用文献资料法、对比分析法、录像观察法、数理统计法、专家访谈法等研究方法,对2010年澳大利亚网球公开赛中的女子单打八强的发球技战术特征进行了统计和对比分析,找出中国选手与国外优秀女子网球运动员发球技战术特征的不同之处,发现其优势和不足。     

Mixed Doubles: Political Hegemony,Urban Entrepreneurialism and the Australian Open Tennis Championships

The National Tennis Centre in Melbourne, Australia, occupies a symbolic role in the repositioning of a once ‘rust-belt’ city as a place for ‘footloose’ capital and tourism. This paper explores the decisions that have been made by successive Victorian state governments between 1984 and 1998 to construct and upgrade the National Tennis Centre. Thematic content analysis of three daily newspapers, and one monthly tennis magazine, was undertaken to map political decisions and accompanying public discussion surrounding the foundation and upgrades of the National Tennis Centre. Successive state governments, representing both the left and right side of politics, have adopted an urban entrepreneurial approach to development and economic regeneration of Melbourne since the early 1980s. Targeting sport as a competitive advantage, significant public investments have been made to ‘sell’ this product to consumers identified as citizens and tourists. Worthy of note, and of particular concern, is the limited consultation with important interest groups, particularly environmentalists and the citizenry, when creating an elite sporting entertainment centre.     

第50届世乒赛男、女运动员发球技术特点研究

乒乓球运动是一项复杂多变,对抗性较强的项目,运动员的发球技术对比赛成绩的影响比较大。就乒乓球发球技术在第50届世乒赛中对运动员比赛成绩的影响,运用体育统计学的有关知识,分析乒乓球运动员的发球技术特点以及当前发球特点的发展趋势,旨在为乒乓球训练提供一些参考。     

步法在网球比赛中的运用与分析

网球是一项技巧性较强的运动,良好的步法移动是网球基本功的重要内容之一,是打好网球的重要条件,也是掌握和运用技术的基础。文章通过文献资料法、图片分析法,对一些优秀网球运动员并结合比赛图片分析其步法组合与运用,得出步法对网球比赛技战术的积极影响,从而得出结论,以指导日后的网球教学与训练。     

从美国经济的崛起预测中国网球的发展

中美自建交以来,两国关系经历了曲折的发展过程。冷战结束后,中美关系经历了建设性战略伙伴关系、建设性合作关系、积极合作全面关系的变化。2013年,习近平主席提出构建不冲突不对抗、相互尊重、合作共赢的中美新型大国关系的发展目标。美国的崛起有很多因素引起,中国经济的崛起也带动了中国的各个行业,从美国的崛起来预测中国网球运动的发展。     

大众网球运动中“网球肘”成因与预防的调查研究

网球是一项深受人们喜爱而又极富乐趣的体育运动。但是网球是一项高技术的运动项目,技术动作比较复杂,运动量大,对网球爱好者的身体素质要求比较高。通过调查发现,大众网球运动中运动者肘关节的损伤比率较高。采用了文献资料法,问卷调差法,实地观察法和数理统计法对大众网球运动中肘关节损伤原因和损伤类型进行分析研究,旨在为网球爱好者预防运动损伤提供理论参考。     

浅析乒乓球新规则对乒乓球技术的影响

对国际乒联“大球”、“11分制”和“无阻挡发球”薪规则出台后,当今世界乒乓球技术产生的变革以及今后乒乓球技术发展趋势作一简要分析．     

网球教学中错误动作的预防与纠正方法研究

网球是一项技术动作比较复杂的运动项目,网球是高校学生喜爱的一项运动。文章详细分析了网球教学和练习中错误技术动作产生的原因,并对网球教学中错误动作的预防和纠正提出解决方法,希望能对网球教学提供一些帮助。