French Open
Tournoi de Roland-Garros, commonly known as the French Open, is a major tennis tournament held over two weeks between mid-May and early June in Paris, France, at the Stade de Roland Garros. It is the second of the Grand Slam tournaments on the annual tennis calendar and the premier clay court tennis tournament in the world. It is one of the most prestigious events in tennis and it benefits of the widest worldwide broadcasting and audience of all events in this sport. Because of the slow playing surface and the five-set men's singles matches without a tiebreak in the final set, the event is considered to be the most physically demanding tennis tournament in the world.
Surface characteristics
Clay courts slow down the ball and produce a high bounce when compared to grass courts or hard courts. Just as grass courts have players whose skills are suited to its surface, clay court specialists have evolved who often succeed here while many higher ranked players struggle. Pete Sampras, who won fourteen Grand Slam singles titles, Roger Federer, the current World No. 1, and Jimmy Connors have won every other Grand Slam singles tournament but never the French Open. On the other hand, clay court specialists like Rafael Nadal, Gustavo Kuerten, Juan Carlos Ferrero and others have never won Grand Slams other than the French Open.
As of 2007, the last eight French Open men's singles championships were won by men who did not win any other Grand Slam tournament, as were the last 13 of 15. The French Open is the title that has also prevented female players like Lindsay Davenport, Maria Sharapova, and Martina Hingis from achieving a career Grand Slam.
Champions