Tennis in Themiclesia: Difference between revisions
(Created page with "'''Tennis''' (Shinasthana: 反奠, ''pran-drjingh'') was first attested in Themiclesia as the influence of {{wp|Real tennis|real tennis}} in a 17th-century version of the...") |
|||
| Line 14: | Line 14: | ||
===Pre-war era=== | ===Pre-war era=== | ||
The TLTC was particularly interested in bolstering the reputation of Themiclesian tennis in its early years and to this end set up a ten-tournament calendar in 1915 for players' convenience and to eliminate scheduling issues. Most players who could afford to play continuously in this era possessed considerable wealth as the tournaments did not offer much prize money. In 1924, | The TLTC was particularly interested in bolstering the reputation of Themiclesian tennis in its early years and to this end set up a ten-tournament calendar in 1915 for players' convenience and to eliminate scheduling issues. Most players who could afford to play continuously in this era possessed considerable wealth as the tournaments did not offer much prize money. In 1924, the International Lawn Tennis Federation recognized the Themiclesian Championships as a major event. The decision was not uncontroversial, as Themiclesia's tennis-playing population still lagged behind other states where tennis was popular, but the TLTC compensated for this fact by presenting a robust list of events and revenues from the crowds that they drew. According to some, the ILTF also considered the future promotion of tennis in the Orient, and Themiclesia's tournaments were, relatively speaking, the best-attended and most accessible in Hemithea. There is a persistent rumour that the TLTC offered a $10,000 bribe to some members of the ILTF, but this remains unsubstantiated. | ||
The first Themiclesian professional | The first stadium dedicated to tennis was erected in 1919 on the grounds of the Tsikw Lawn Club; with a seating capacity of 3,500, it was the largest sporting venue in Themiclesia. A smaller stadium was built in Samia Club in 1920, and the Themiclesian Championships bounced between the grounds of the two clubs until after the war. To promote the Themiclesian Championships, the TLTC offered free hotel rooms to foreign players coming to play, though in the 20s and 30s the event had the weakest draw amongst the major events by a considerable margin. Top players did not frequently play in Themiclesia, and the Championships were considered a lesser event, despite formal recognition by the ILTF. | ||
The first Themiclesian professional, Martin Duk (1892 – 1976), signed a 100-match contract with an Anglian promoter in 1925 and played in Anglia, Sieuxerr, and [[Tol Galen]]. His performance was unremarkable according to contemporaries, and when he retired from professional playing he became a coach in the Lang-pin Club helping members improve their games. | |||
===PSW=== | |||
The development of tennis was interrupted by the [[Pan-Septentrion War]]. As many renowned players entered the armed forces, the habit of playing tennis spread into parts of the forces stationed close to tennis courts. Various bases of the [[Themiclesian Air Force]] mowed corners of aerodromes to install tennis courts, but other units also took advantage of nearby facilities. Some private clubs voluntarily permitted military officers to play at their facilities without membership as part of the Armed Forces Leisure Establishment's initiatives; however, this privilege was not automatically extended to non-officers. Even at clubs not participating in the Establishment's initiative, officers with membership at one club could often persuade another club's officials to permit temporary use of facilities. By the end of the war, regular tournaments were held between the services and regiments, and long-standing rivalries developed. | |||
===Post-war boom=== | |||
Starting the national reconstruction in 1943, the government actively supported the suburbanization of Themiclesia's two largest cities, [[Kien-k'ang]] and Rak. Government directives encouraged planners to include leisure and sports facilities in new, less-dense communities, as a remedy for dismal sanitary conditions in urban slums, and their effects on health, revealed by the war. Many planners preferred tennis courts, particularly around Kien-k'ang, to fulfill these directives. This was because tennis courts did not require any superstructure or foundations, but only a lawn, net-posts, and fences. Grass courts were considered cheaper to erect compared to hard and clay courts, which either required foundations or regular maintenance. Even the net was often replaced with a rope. As grass grew naturally in most places, planners believed that the community only needed a roller, lawn mower, and white paint for lines to maintain the courts. Two players required only racquets and balls. | |||
The plenitude of tennis courts and players returning from the forces resulted in a boom in tennis and related activities in Themiclesia starting in 1947. The image of a family enjoying tennis together was promoted as the Government's successful settlement of veterans, who numbered in the hundreds of thousands, and their re-integration into domestic life. For the first time, the centre of tennis-playing shifted from private clubs to public courts, which numbered 4,000 nationally by 1950. A larger tennis-playing population also created demand for coaching and local tournaments, which the TLTC was quick to fulfill. Moreover, the middle-class connotations of the sport rendered it attractive to many communities. | |||
The phenomenal spread of tennis was inseparable from the success of Michael Sup, who was a discharged Air Force officer and won the Championships of Anglia in 1947, 49, and 50 in men's singles. After Sup, players like Mjat, Kar, Teng, and Ligwh in the men's game and Prat and Ka-sna in the womens' made Themiclesia a serious contender in international amateur tennis, and similar inroads were made in the professional game, which restarted in earnest in 1951. Their successes encouraged the TLTC to form a permanent team to compete in the Player's Cup, the pre-eminent championship between nations. The Cup Team also permitted the TLTC to interpose itself in the training of hopefuls and their going abroad. Cup Team and Club excursions were used as an excuse for transporting players to tournaments, when they otherwise ought to have paid for passage themselves. | |||
===Peak popularity=== | |||
At the peak of the tennis craze, it is estimated that about 10% of Themiclesians (or over 3.1 million people in 1965) have played tennis at least once. Even though only a minuscule fraction thereof ever became heavily involved in the sport, the TLTC's tentacles reached into schools and local tournaments to scour for talented children and offered them free or discounted instruction. | |||
==Notable players== | ==Notable players== | ||
Revision as of 14:00, 26 April 2021
Tennis (Shinasthana: 反奠, pran-drjingh) was first attested in Themiclesia as the influence of real tennis in a 17th-century version of the game of balls, but the game of lawn tennis was first played in Themiclesia in 1879. The latter game originally enjoyed little popularity but gained a following in social clubs around 1895, with the first tournament held in 1899. Tennis evolved from an elite, social sport to a competitive sport in the 1920s but was not popular with the general public until after the Pan-Septentrion War. Between 1947 and 1983, multiple Themiclesian players won major titles in both the amateur and professional games and achieved international recognition, but the nation's dominance in top levels has declined since.
Themiclesia is home to the Lawn Tennis Open Championships of Themiclesia, which is considered one of the four major events in tennis culture.
History
Early history
The game of balls evolved from one that focused on fighting for a ball to one that rewarded moving the ball to a scoring area and not allowing it to come to rest on the ground in the course of the 16th century. Most sports historians attribute this evolution to influence from real tennis, but there is to date no conclusive evidence that real tennis was ever played in Themiclesia or immediate peripheries. A minority of historians argue that the apparent changes in rules were not the result of foreign influence, but domestic evolution. Several written references have been made by Themiclesian merchants and diplomats who went to Casaterra, where the game was played. It is thought that they may have introduced elements of real tennis to balls, which then lost its combative aspect and became more strategic (contact is not allowed in the modern version of balls).
Lawn tennis was brought to Themiclesia by E. R. Ben, who was the Themiclesian consul in Hadaway between 1871 and 1877. The first ever game in Themiclesia was, apparently, played in his very lawn in Kien-k'ang having brought a commercially-sold set of equipment home. Nevertheless, the game did not spread further from his household for some years, as much of the Themiclesian gentry at that time thought that physical exertion was unbecoming of their status. This changed by the end of the 19th century, and games like lawn tennis and croquet became more popular in social clubs in the capital city. In 1894, only a single club was known to have provided premises for the game, but by 1896 six had adopted it for summer entertainment. By 1898, "every fashionable club in the city has a lawn for the playing of the game called 'lawn-tennis'."
In 1899, the first inter-club tournament was held under the name of Lower Themiclesia Lawn Games, inviting "young gentlemen accomplished in the skills of lawn-tennis" to compete. Evidently, older gentlemen were not explicitly invited because they were more likely to be engaged in "serious work" like politics and legal practice, and games like tennis were still considered somewhat incompatible with their social position. Yet for the monied and socially-active young men, tennis became a popular game. A ladies' tournament began in 1902. The introduction of sports had a considerable impact on club culture in Themiclesia, prompting clubs to specialize in providing sports, food, or exclusivity from rivals; some providing sporting facilities felt confident in their ability to retain members even moving to less central areas, where more courts could be built.
45 tennis-playing clubs founded the Themiclesian Lawn Tennis Committee in 1907 to organize tournaments and oversee competitive standards, and in 1908 the Lower Themiclesian Lawn Games were renamed the Themiclesian Lawn Tennis Championships. Some of the early tournaments were played between teams representing clubs, but others were entered individually. The TLTC, with one vote per member club, adopted the rule of amateurism in 1910 to prevent wealthier clubs from bribing players from other clubs to improve their teams in club-versus-club tournaments. The same rule also prevented clubs from paying non-members to play on their behalf, which was advocated by the social reformer S. R. Krep, who argued that all clubs should open their doors to non-members because sports brought a "classless benefit".
Pre-war era
The TLTC was particularly interested in bolstering the reputation of Themiclesian tennis in its early years and to this end set up a ten-tournament calendar in 1915 for players' convenience and to eliminate scheduling issues. Most players who could afford to play continuously in this era possessed considerable wealth as the tournaments did not offer much prize money. In 1924, the International Lawn Tennis Federation recognized the Themiclesian Championships as a major event. The decision was not uncontroversial, as Themiclesia's tennis-playing population still lagged behind other states where tennis was popular, but the TLTC compensated for this fact by presenting a robust list of events and revenues from the crowds that they drew. According to some, the ILTF also considered the future promotion of tennis in the Orient, and Themiclesia's tournaments were, relatively speaking, the best-attended and most accessible in Hemithea. There is a persistent rumour that the TLTC offered a $10,000 bribe to some members of the ILTF, but this remains unsubstantiated.
The first stadium dedicated to tennis was erected in 1919 on the grounds of the Tsikw Lawn Club; with a seating capacity of 3,500, it was the largest sporting venue in Themiclesia. A smaller stadium was built in Samia Club in 1920, and the Themiclesian Championships bounced between the grounds of the two clubs until after the war. To promote the Themiclesian Championships, the TLTC offered free hotel rooms to foreign players coming to play, though in the 20s and 30s the event had the weakest draw amongst the major events by a considerable margin. Top players did not frequently play in Themiclesia, and the Championships were considered a lesser event, despite formal recognition by the ILTF.
The first Themiclesian professional, Martin Duk (1892 – 1976), signed a 100-match contract with an Anglian promoter in 1925 and played in Anglia, Sieuxerr, and Tol Galen. His performance was unremarkable according to contemporaries, and when he retired from professional playing he became a coach in the Lang-pin Club helping members improve their games.
PSW
The development of tennis was interrupted by the Pan-Septentrion War. As many renowned players entered the armed forces, the habit of playing tennis spread into parts of the forces stationed close to tennis courts. Various bases of the Themiclesian Air Force mowed corners of aerodromes to install tennis courts, but other units also took advantage of nearby facilities. Some private clubs voluntarily permitted military officers to play at their facilities without membership as part of the Armed Forces Leisure Establishment's initiatives; however, this privilege was not automatically extended to non-officers. Even at clubs not participating in the Establishment's initiative, officers with membership at one club could often persuade another club's officials to permit temporary use of facilities. By the end of the war, regular tournaments were held between the services and regiments, and long-standing rivalries developed.
Post-war boom
Starting the national reconstruction in 1943, the government actively supported the suburbanization of Themiclesia's two largest cities, Kien-k'ang and Rak. Government directives encouraged planners to include leisure and sports facilities in new, less-dense communities, as a remedy for dismal sanitary conditions in urban slums, and their effects on health, revealed by the war. Many planners preferred tennis courts, particularly around Kien-k'ang, to fulfill these directives. This was because tennis courts did not require any superstructure or foundations, but only a lawn, net-posts, and fences. Grass courts were considered cheaper to erect compared to hard and clay courts, which either required foundations or regular maintenance. Even the net was often replaced with a rope. As grass grew naturally in most places, planners believed that the community only needed a roller, lawn mower, and white paint for lines to maintain the courts. Two players required only racquets and balls.
The plenitude of tennis courts and players returning from the forces resulted in a boom in tennis and related activities in Themiclesia starting in 1947. The image of a family enjoying tennis together was promoted as the Government's successful settlement of veterans, who numbered in the hundreds of thousands, and their re-integration into domestic life. For the first time, the centre of tennis-playing shifted from private clubs to public courts, which numbered 4,000 nationally by 1950. A larger tennis-playing population also created demand for coaching and local tournaments, which the TLTC was quick to fulfill. Moreover, the middle-class connotations of the sport rendered it attractive to many communities.
The phenomenal spread of tennis was inseparable from the success of Michael Sup, who was a discharged Air Force officer and won the Championships of Anglia in 1947, 49, and 50 in men's singles. After Sup, players like Mjat, Kar, Teng, and Ligwh in the men's game and Prat and Ka-sna in the womens' made Themiclesia a serious contender in international amateur tennis, and similar inroads were made in the professional game, which restarted in earnest in 1951. Their successes encouraged the TLTC to form a permanent team to compete in the Player's Cup, the pre-eminent championship between nations. The Cup Team also permitted the TLTC to interpose itself in the training of hopefuls and their going abroad. Cup Team and Club excursions were used as an excuse for transporting players to tournaments, when they otherwise ought to have paid for passage themselves.
Peak popularity
At the peak of the tennis craze, it is estimated that about 10% of Themiclesians (or over 3.1 million people in 1965) have played tennis at least once. Even though only a minuscule fraction thereof ever became heavily involved in the sport, the TLTC's tentacles reached into schools and local tournaments to scour for talented children and offered them free or discounted instruction.