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Wimbledon hoping to be No1 with new roof

Summary:

A masterplan is in place for the future of the championships.

Image:

By David Eggboro

A masterplan is in place for the future of the Wimbledon Championships including a roof over Court one.

The All English Lawn Tennis Club (AELTC) yesterday announced the plans to build a new fixed and retractable roof on the 11,500 capacity show court.

The roof will be the centrepiece of an extensive 15-20 year redevelopment plan for the site and should be in place by the 2019 tournament.

AELTC Chairman, Philip Brook, said: “There is a chance of course that both of these courts do run late and both of them finish at the same time.”

The court will be operational throughout the project and a championship without any shelter on the court is very likely.

The roof, which will allow play until 11pm, comes alongside an increase in capacity to the stadium and a comprehensive landscaping of the club’s grounds.

Mr Brook said that the famous hill will not be affected by the redevelopment plans.

“They don’t eat into Henman Hill, if anything they extend the hill around the corner,” he said.

The five year expectation for the completion of the new roof comes from a two year design phase and a three year building phase.

In the coming days, the club will have meetings with neighbours which will start the consultation process.

Further presentations and meetings will take place in the autumn, including any feedback from the consultation process.

Photo courtesy of Marc Di Luzio via Wiki Commons, with thanks.

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