An Afternoon With Rolex Ambassadors At Wimbledon 2015

By Victoria Townsend | July 6, 2015

Swiss watch brand Rolex is the Official Timekeeper for the 38th year running at Wimbledon home of the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club that held its first lawn tennis championship in July 1877.

Entering its second week after a scorching first seven days, the oldest and most prestigious tennis tournament in the world, referred to by Swiss champion Roger Federer as the “temple of tennis – an institution…” is followed by more than 378 million viewers and spectators every year.

Known for its traditional all-white attire for players, its strawberries and cream, and its perfect grass that is resurfaced and reseeded annually, it is the only Grand Slam tournament still played on grass today, appreciated by purists who consider the surface enables “more of a serve and volley game” and a wider variety of strokes.

A championship based on pure tradition, Wimbledon favors modernization when it can enhance spectator enjoyment of the game, as demonstrated with its retractable roof over Centre Court, and with its hawk-eye computer technology to ensure precise line-calls, this latter introduced in 2007 with Rolex’s support. With its own history, numerous patents, and research for the future, Rolex shares these values of tradition and innovations, for the pleasure of watch users all over the world.

Rolex is also Associate Sponsor and Official Timekeeper of the Australian Open, and Official Timekeeper of the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) World Tour, World Tour Finals, and the WTA Championships.

Rolex’s commitment to tennis does not stop with these long-standing partnerships. It contributes to the development of the sport, and among its testimonies are eight tennis greats. Seven-time Wimbledon champion Roger Federer (pictured above), France’s Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, Milos Raonic from Canada, Grigor Dimitrov from Bulgaria, Denmark’s Caroline Wozniacki (pictured below), Serbia’s Ana Ivanovic, Sloane Stephens from the U.S.A. and Belinda Bencic from Switzerland – all attest to the vision of a solid, international brand that has always looked outwards and beyond.

As a privileged Rolex guest on Day Three, I shivered with pleasure despite the heat when entering the courts for the very first time. Overwhelming! And equally impressive to see Novak Djokovic defeat Jarkko Nieminen, Milos Raonic serve at 135 mph against Tommy Haas (and win), and Serena Williams overpower Timea Babos in 2 quick sets.

Rolex has been proving its dedication to performance and reliability under difficult conditions since 1927, when the first airtight and waterproof watch – the Rolex Oyster, invented one year earlier – was tested by English swimmer Mercedes Gleitze who swam the English Channel and emerged after 10 hours with her Rolex Oyster still going strong. Its perpetual rotor system for a wristwatch, patented just three years later in 1931, provided the basis for contemporary self-winding systems and the 2015 Oyster Perpetual collection.

With its values of precision, reliability and robustness, Rolex has developed a strong relationship with the arts, exploration, and the sport disciplines of golf, yachting, equestrianism, motor sports, snow skiing, and… tennis.